I Finally Decided: Do A Pond!!!

As many of you may know, before I moved last fall, I had a pond. Small preformed but it was doing quite well and I was happy with it. When I moved, I had to draw the line about what to take with me and the pond lost.

My brother was planning a pond and we had many discussions about setting it up and all so I caught the pond bug. This time, I went with a 50 gallon preformed so if/when I have to move again, taking it with me will be possible.

I decided this one would be a stillwater. There is a shallow shelf in one end to hold plants that like wet feet. I already had some callas to put there.
Well, I turned the sprinklers on to try to figure out where the pipes might be running underground, tried the pond here and there. Thought about putting it in the shade garden and decided I would have to move too many plants to make room for it.

So it goes in the middle of the backyard with a castor bean tree to made some shade for it and I can see it from my Florida room windows. I hit, but did not puncture 2 irrigation pipes and had to move my hole over 2 ways by 4 inches each. I put it in the ground with about 6-8 above ground level.

Here it is in the ground now. I lined the co-op hibiscus plants around it for the time being to cover up the edges. I put some feeder goldfish into it along with some oxygenating plants. And of course the callas on the shelf.

Since my favorite Pond Store wasn't open on that day, when the afternoon sun hit the water, I figured I better get something to cover at least 50% of the water surface to discourage algae. Let's see, plastic take out containers, egg cartons opened out and large tupperware bowls. LOL, it looked like a giant dish pan.

Today I am at my favorite Pond Place again, at 10:00am. They should be open, but they are not, until 12:30. Well, the gate was ajar, so I went in to talk to the owner. He made an exception to the hours and sold me 1 water lily and a 4 foot stretch of aquatic "Sensitive" vine.

The Lily is pale lavender, and did you know they are fragrant? Smells so good.

Egad, I still forgot to buy some fish food!!!! Better go do that now. Now, how do I talk the frogs into moving to my yard?

Molly
:^)))

Molly how did you get that all done when you spend all day lunching with the girls!

Posy,

Ya know, the three of us have been trying to do lunch since February. So hard to coordinate 3 schedules, so we can spend some time with our friends.

But we got it worked out now and we are raiding one of the local nurseries to make a "gardening" day of it. Living Colors has some sedum that somehow got into a potted plant I bought. When I got it home I put the sedum under my Clerodedrum tree and it likes it there. I need some more, 2 sprigs wasn't enough.

Molly
:^)))

You make sure and squeeze (xoxoxo) Happy for me. I'm Jealous! Have a great time.

Molly, let me know if you need anything else for your pond. I have horsetail reed, lizard tail, ginger, iris, paprys (sp), chameleon plant, and I am sure I am forgetting something. My Queen of Siam lily bloomed today. Hope to get a pic of it.

Posy,

I will sure do that. And we shall talk about you too. :^))))

Rylaff,

I would love something from your pond plants. Maybe lizard tail and papyrus? Is the papyrus the dwarf?

Thank you. What can I send to you?

Molly
:^)))

Molly,
I think I have some dwarf. I know I have the bigger one. Will have to doublecheck.
How about something from zone 10? Got anything extra? Not picky. Something small.

Rylaff,

Thanks, I will send you some info on DG mail.

Molly

Molly it is beautiful!! I think it goes to show too that smaller is just a beautiful as bigger.

I see so many great ideas here and still cant figure out where I would put one. Im getting closer tho, thinking about the right side of the tool shed, no one plays there but the squirrels and I dont mind annoying them one bit, LOL.

Rylaff, I took some pictures just now. Zone 10!!! LOL. You'd be surprised how many zone 10 plants I DON'T have in my garden. But I do have a few. Maybe something that would interest you.

Janet, Thanks, I think you should do it. One of these small preformed lists at $44.95 at Lowes. Or what the heck, sink a couple of those rubbermaid roughnecks in the ground. (What an idea for my bog Iris extension. Oh My) I need to go back to work!!!

Here's a close up this morning of the lilys and the fern in the middle of the two is the aquatic "sensitive".

Already picking mango leaves out of the water. I can't wait until they're ripe and mangos hit the ground and water Yeck!!!! Can you say Tidal Wave?

Is it Tidal Wave or Tsunami? heheheheheeee

Im thinking I will too. Just have to wait a little longer, Im going to New York City with my mom next saturday, just a trip for the two of us so Im saving my money to spend while Im there. This time Im taking my camera with me and if Im lucky Ill find some interesting things. I went with her 2 years ago and we saw the Rockets, that didnt leave as much time for sight seeing as we would have liked but then it was the beginning of December and cold out, bbbrrr. So the sunken pond will have to wait till after I get back.

Im waitiiiiing, LOL

Turn my back for an hour and look what happens!!!! These tropicals, ya just can't keep up with them. The lily's have opened.

Molly
:^)))

Janet, have a great time and yes, take lots of pictures. We'll help get your pond set up when you get back.

Wow those are beautiful! Yeah, to actualy have a pond in the ground is gonna be cool. Ill just have to keep an eye on Isabelle and the dogs to make sure they dont decide its a pool.

Janet,

With a small pond like this one and raised a bit out of the ground, it has some safety already there. Now Snowy, my greyhound thinks that any water feature in the yard is her personal water bowl.

She drinks out of the Iris bog, eewwww. When I was moving things around I got a whiff of the water in that bog. No wonder that dog has the worst breath in the world. (I really need to get her some more "greenies" to chew on)

Me :^))))

I wish "I" had the reason for Justice and Ryder to have such bad breath, pee-ew. My guys really love the greenies too, the only problem is the thievery that goes on. I give them each one, Tequilla saves his for later by walking away, Justice takes his to his pillow and lays down to watch it for a while and Ryder eats his right then and there and then proceeds to steal the other two, Justice watches him take it and Tequilla will make him leave but Ryder watches that thing like a hawk so I put it in Teak's crate and close the door till later, Ryder figured out how to open the door, jump in and take it to eat in his crate so he isnt seen. Such a sneak.

Wow, they're as much work to keep up with as kids aren't they?

My two are so deprived of snacks and such, they sit down and eat each one until it's gone. Snowy has learned to get it while she can because my fat "Baby" who is on a lifelong diet, will steal snacks every chance she gets.

:^)))

Ya gotta love em tho.

I love your pond Molly!! The lily is beautiful. Those hibiscus look nice sitting there too. :)

Thank you Chele.

Did you notice? In the first picture, the coleus bed. Those should look familiar to you and the sweet potato vines. In the second picture, the castor bean tree?

This isn't my garden, it's your's mine and ours!!!

Okay, I'm teering up and am inspired to start a new thread about this.

I really do need to get a job. (Got calls coming in for projects and once they get started I'll be crying for time off.)

Molly

Awe Molly, you are just a big baby. :) I do recongnize a few of those plants. Good thing you are not closer cuz I might go *weeding* for ya. Hahahaha

There was a time when I could tell you who each and every plant in my garden came from and where they lived. Now that so many years have passed and so many neat people have come and gone from my life, it is not quite so easy. :( I can tell you about a bunch of them though.

I LOVE having my own little special place in your heart and gardens though. :)

Chele,

That baby part thing, yeah, I pretty well try to keep that a secret. Most people who know me face to face don't know about that part. Yall here at Dave's do tho. So much easier to open up in writing than face to face.

I don't know what it is today, can the keyboard short out from this stuff coming out of my eyes? LOL maybe it's spring pollen.

:^)))

Just a little update. Finally after 2 weeks of solid rain, today was dry and HOT.

I had a plan. Get some mulch and define some flower beds with that and a little wire fencing. The pond got some attention and the birdbath did as well.

Here's the pond now. I have some EE's there, some I received from Elyearcrazy, got some lizard tail, papyrus and horsetail from Rylaff. I didn't have room to put them all in the pond so I made another bog bucket and sunk it into the ground behind the pond. I picked up that white and green Louisiana Iris in Orlando (bloom will be purple) I have callas done blooming and setting seeds now, and today I picked up some ornamental grasses, hair and sedge. Judy Cooksey sent me some water lettuce. The 2 kinds of aquatic Sensitive are growing quite nicely and the lily pads are as well, just haven't had any blooms lately. I think the goldfish are down there biting the blooms off. I have fished out 3.

I put mulch down in the "viewing" area with some stepping stones I got from Jannich at the Florala roundup. Now I just need to find some small bog type plant to put in froggies planter.

The pond is full right now. I'm not sure what the next stage of life the callas will go through and I expect the goldfish may keep eating that lily. (Hey, I HAVE been feeding them) So anyway, it's an ever changing project.



This message was edited Jun 12, 2005 9:47 PM

Here's what I did with the birdbath. It is cultivating some water lettuce. The goldfish can't eat it all, I'm saving some for my brother.

I recently ran out of space in my daylily bed so the overflow is here. The bog bucket in the back hold iris' that Tazzy gave me last year at the KYRU. The brug on the left is Sunray from GaGalinFl and the one on the right is Charles Grimaldi from Nathalyn at the TNRU May 2004. Oh there are some DL's from Sue in Calif and more ornamental grass from Home Depot, today. The snail vine climbing the trellis on the right is from Moda. It's taken all winter, but I finally am teaching that to grow up over the trellis and not through my wind chimes.

We also cleared a bed out around the mango tree so I would have a place to put all the hibiscus that were around the pond before.

We had to loosen sod and weeds and remove them and lay 8 bags of mulch. Long hard day but we got it done.

Here is my helper today. His debut on Dave's. My son, Jeremy. He's not a gardener, but was quite willing to help mom.

Molly
:^)))

How is your garden doing now, later in the summer? Have you added fish to it?

fireant,

What an interesting name. Welcome to Dave's. I'm glad you found me. Yes I did put fish into the pond, shortly after I set it up, 10 feeder fish and somehow a black fish got in, probably when I brought the lily. I lost 3 fish when the landlord hired a guy to mow. He didn't use a mower bag and a lot of dead grass got into the pond.

I had to practically empty the pond to clean it out. But got it done, gave my mind to the landlord (as if I could afford to give any of THAT away) Now all is as it should be. The pond plants have taken off.

I discovered that hortwort has tiny little daisy like blooms. The smaller leafed sensitive also has blooms. Comes out on an 8" stalk and is fuzzy and yellow. I also discovered the fish were not eating the lily, but it was rotting off before breaking the surface due to lack of sunshine. My over zealous efforts of covering the water surface to keep back the algae caused this problem.

The hibiscus have been moved twice since then, I have moved the calla lily pots and thinned the bog iris. I am in process of thinning out the aquatic sensitive fern, and a few other things. They are all growing like crazy!!!

When I go out in the morning and call "Here fishy, fishy, fishy!" they are waiting for me and will come eat the food from my fingers.

Fireant, Where is Mascotte Fl? Thanks for looking in.

Molly

Molly,
Your pond is beautiful. I've heard fish will come up to people, but it seems odd. Thanks for the information on the mowing. When I put a pond in, I will be careful of that.

Mascotte is on the west side of Groveland, which is west of Clermont. It's on Highway 50 about ten miles west from Highway 27.

I am new to Dave's Garden and an inexperienced gardener. My daughter suggested fireant when I was thinking up a name. We have had serious problems with fireants, but I think they are under control now.

I admire you doing that kind of work to your pond at this time of year. It's been too hot to do much outside.

Any suggestions on dealing with fireants would be apprecitated.
Nancy

This message was edited Aug 3, 2005 9:17 AM

Good Morning Nancy,

Your fireant problem sounds really horrible. I've been lucky down here, although they are here, I think keeping a good solid covering of St Augustine sod seems to help keep them back. Maybe they are just worse up in mid state. I lived in Orlando when I first came to Fla in '77 and before that, in Texas and had fireants in both places. Maybe they are just worse where the ground is a bit drier.

I know what you mean about the heat. Although I will go out in the middle of the day and pull a root here and there, I don't do any serious work until the sun has gone over the trees in the late, late afternoon. Then if it's not raining, I get some work done.

Thanks for the compliments on the pond. As for the fish, in the aquariums you keep in your house, I believe the fish can hear and see you. After a fashion, they seem to become tame, considering you feed them and don't appear to be a threat. Same thing for the ponds. I have put my hand in to feed them, had them nibble on my fingers and can even pick them up in the palm of my hand. They are like having tiny pets.

Molly
:^)))

Molly,

That makes sense about the acquarium. We had one when we lived in Lake Wales, and the fish were very tame.

We moved to central Florida in July of '75, while I was still in high school.

Where did you get your pond basin, and how large is it? It seems like a good size for a pond. I couldn't tell whether or not you had a filter. Did you get the basin by itself or as part of a package? I am even less experienced with water gardening, but I would like to put a small pond in soon. It seems as if a lot of people use preformed basins. I think I would have better success with one of those than with digging my own and putting pond liner down. Some of the ponds I've seen are stunning with dramatic waterfalls, lights, and plants. One person used a backhoe to dig his. I just want something small enough for a shovel. I originally wanted a waterfall, too, but now I think a fountain would be more practical for the space I plan to put the pond in.

Nancy

This message was edited Aug 3, 2005 9:19 AM

Hi Nancy,

I got my plastic "preformed" from Lowes. It's a 60 gallon pond. Cost $45.00. I dug a hole to sink it in the ground, still 6-8" above soil level on the rim. I do not have filtration or aeration systems. So far the plants seem to be doing the job. I have 6-8 fish in there, not too big so still plenty of water space for them. The water in the pond smells good, leading me to believe it's healthy. It gets rain or well water sprinkling to keep the water level up.

Oh yes, I also have a pitcher I dip water out of when I want to water my plants on the patio. When I want to fertilize my plants, I use a cup to dip from the bottom of the pond. Lots of good stuff down there plants love.

I think you should do a pond. With a small one like this, it's not that difficult to set up or maintain. You will get a great deal of pleasure from it.

Molly
:^)))

Thanks for the information, Molly. I didn't think preformed ponds could work without filtration, but I guess they would be easier to empty and start again if needed. I like the size of yours, and it would fit in the space I have in mind. I also like the idea of using the pond water for watering and feeding plants. I have city water, so I would probably have to use distilled water if rain water were in short supply. Or put a filter in.

Is there a reason why you keep it so far above the ground? I would have to keep mine a little above because the area I want to put it is near the foundation of the house, but I think I could get it almost level to the ground. I have to wait until my next pay to start. I had money this summer, but my daughter is in her last year of college and needed a car and is now engaged and needed to order her wedding dress before going back to college. She's been very expensive this summer, even with her working.

Hi Nancy,

I just found your other thread about planning your pond. I posted over there.

Why a raised pond? #1, I didn't have to dig so far down. But I didn't want it all the way above ground because then I would have to buy retaining blocks to help support the sides of the pond. #2, dirt and stuff won't be washing into the pond if it's raised. #3, a bit easier for me to bend over and reach down to play with the fish. :^)))

You were talking over there about a waterfall. Lowe's does sell a plastic attachment with directions on set up for these preformed ponds. You may want to take a look at that.

Let me know when you are ready and I can send you a couple starter plants.

Molly
:^)))

Molly,

I didn't know Lowes had waterfalls. I would appreciate the plants. Have you gotten any frogs, yet? I have several in my yard, and my cat brings them in sometimes. I like the dedorative frog in front of your pond, and the sea horse bird bath. My neighbor on the east side has an elaborate pond under her queen palm. I guess that's where the frogs come from. Plus there's a little lake behind the houses across the street. The pond designed on the other thread is elaborate and looks too expensive, but it is stunning.

Nancy,

Yes, in the same area they sell the preformed pond, they have the other plastic items to use with them, like the waterfall thing.

3 months now the pond has been up and the only frogs I have are the ceramic ones. At my old house I had a couple tree frogs, then I remembered, they didn't come because of the pond. They came in my van from LaBelle when I went over to do some painting and brought some awnings back. The tree frogs were in the awnings. I miss those little guys.

I had my pet store put me on a call list for when they get a shipment of tree frogs in. I want 2. If that doesn't work, I'll have to ask my customer in LaBelle to catch me some and bring them over here. LOL

:^))))
Molly

Molly, I just saw this post and if you want some tree frogs I'll see if I can catch some. There are quite a few in my garden that are active at night and wake me up at night during mating season.

jnana

This message was edited Jun 13, 2006 10:27 AM

Oh Val, yes please please please :^))))

Molly

Ok, tonight I'll try to catch one.

jnana

This message was edited Jun 13, 2006 10:27 AM