water plants and pots

Can I just use sand!? Or do the plants need the nutrients from the soil? Dont want to have to buy separate soil unless absolutely necessary!

Also, will any container do? I read a book that said the mesh typed pots were not necessary. ?? Id rather be safe than sorry!! Have some plants to divide and repot...a few are already in the soil mixture and special pots...others are bareroot. (from wonderful garden exchanges, and the local nursery... they included planting instructions for the plant (depth, shade or sun, etc.... ) So that part is covered.

Any and ALL advice is appreciated!!

I don't use sand, I use *unamended* garden clay. I've tried gravel, it doesn't work for me. You can use osmocote or Jobes tomato spikes for fertilizer, put it where the roots will cross them. I don't use mesh pots, and I've even used plastic dishpans in an emergency, the 'lilypots' are expensive. Make sure you put your lily in the widest thing you can, but with bog plants that doesn't matter, you'll divide them in the spring. A lily will grow more and bloom more, the more surface area it has.

I agree with tiG, plain old garden soil with lots of clay mixed in,then topped with pea gravel seems to work best for me. I've used the Osmocote for the past 2 yrs. with great results. No more monthly feedings, makes my dh happy, as he was the one in the pond lifting the lilies ea. month for their plant tab.

I also tried the gravel in a few pots and when I lifted the pots from the pond..the gravel was stinky and black. Just reeked! I'm guessing that was the 'bad' bacteria.

I've used dishpans, black oil change pans, lg. plastic salad bowls from the $store, etc. For lilies, look for anything that is wider than it is deep and with no drainage holes. For marginal plants, 1-5 gal. nursery pots work great...just line the bottom with a plastic bag to keep the soil in. Hope this is of help to you, it is what works well for me.

Jean

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I use the cheap top soil at Wal~Mart and mix it with some of the clay and dirt from my yard. I get my pots from the dollar store. They are "Utility tubs" that are just the right size for lilies. They also are black which I like so you can't see them when they are in the pond. They are about the same size around and 3 inches taller than the squat pots they charge big bucks for and they are only $1!
I also bought one of those tubs with the rope handles (you know, the kind like kids use for their toys) I fill it with water and sink the newly planted pots in it. I leave them there for 24-48 hours so any settling can be done before I put the pots in the pond, and anything that might float up is contained and I don't have to worry about any dirt floating around in the pond.

Homemade biofilter... I must do more researching!!



All we have on our property is sand... but I imagine it too would turn black in the pond. And I know the stuff I use for my land plants will not work! Ill look for plain soil and clay at the stores. They'll think Im nuts... clay!? Just hope they dont steer me to that Aqua-soil. That stuff is overpriced in my opinion!

Weed mat material is a good idea... I have lots of that!

Thanks to all of you for your wonderful advice on the planting medium... and containers. I'll be scavenging the utility room!! And MzM, please dont hesitate to keep that list going! 'cuz this is a whole new world to me!!

warmest wishes,
Nicole

I don't use any pots, the lilies that do the best in our pond are stuck in the bottom under river run rocks. The same for the marginals, no pots. I stick a fertilizer stick in beside the plants and they seem to do pretty well.

Come visit http://www.mhelm.com

ponder, do you have fish? Do you ever have problems with the roots??

Yes we have about 30 goldfish from 2" to 9" never had any problem, you can't do no pots with koi. No problem so far and this is the 3rd year.

Hi! When I use regular plant pots for pond plants, I cover the holes in the bottom with coffee filters. I use a layer of pea gravel to hold them in place, so they don't get moved while potting up the plants. The coffee filter allows the water the flow through the pot and since I always have them around the house, they are not an added expense.

theponder, I'm extremely interested in your planting style, just think how much trouble this would save me!! But, don't you get a terrible algae bloom when you fertilize? The reason for putting the fertilizer in the clay is to keep it from leaching into the water. I can see doing this in a fish pond and not using fertilizer, cause the fishie water would do it, but I'm so curious. I have one pond that doesn't have fish, but I don't really want an algae bloom at this time of summer, and it's the only pond that's really clear:) You've got me biting, just keep talking, please!!

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MzM-
We built our pond, it is about 3800 gals., approx. 14' x 16'. It has a butyl liner, bio-filter (out of pond) and 20' stream. I have some photos at photopoint.com, enter michaelwendy@hotmail.com in the box for "friends email address" to view them. There is one shot (not the best) of the pond, which will give you an idea of what it looks like. Hmm...I wonder why you can't access my info? I'm not much of a computer whiz, so I am easily lost...

I have used regular clay and kitty litter (unscented) - both work well. I use plant tabs twice. Once on start up in about March or April and then again at the end of July. I use the mesh baskets on my plant shelf and for the liles that are suspended I use old dry wall buckets cut in half (you can't see them) I line all pots with quilt batting, then dirt, then the plant, and then put about 2" rocks over that. We have koi and they eat everything that isn't covered up. The lilies bloom continuously and the shelf plants off and on. Happy Water Gardening - vic

ps - tiG - if you read this, I posted a salsa recipe for you in recipes. You had asked for one on chat last night

thanks vic!!! that was very thoughtful!!

You're Welcome - I hope you enjoy it - There are some others out there too - vic

tiG, first let me say that all the posts on this thread offer sound advice and if you are starting a pond I would suggest going with conventional methods.
I have river run rocks in the pond, my choice, again there is nothing wrong with uncovered liners.
I am experimenting with non-pots and I have found that Arrow heads, water plantain, flowering rush, marsh marigolds, sweet flag, common iris, chives and pickeral weed are growing well with no pots. I have three lily plants, 1 is not in a pot and it is doing the best of the three. Water mint I keep in a pot to prevent it from speading. None of the oxygenators are in pots.
I fertilize as Vic suggested in spring and about now.
I have not had any algie blooms in the last 2 years, do get string algie which I treat with barley straw.
There is no bio-flter on the 1200 gal. pond.

I've had my ponds for about 5 years. One has koi, so that wouldn't work there. I'm going to take some of mine in one of the other ponds out of the pot and see what happens:) Thanks for the tip!!
Oh, and how do you keep your marginals off the bottom if not in a pot?

tiG, Don,t understand question about marginals. They are in the bottom.

the bottom of your pond? Marginals are listed with certain depths that they do best in and they're not usually listed as being able to handle the depths that lilies can. That's why they're put on the margin, higher shelf. I think it's great that they work for you like that!

itG, sorry I was not clear the pond has a sloping bottom so I put the marginals at the desired depth and have the depth in the center for the lilies.

thanks:) I could do that on my shelves then:)

i do'nt use any soil i started my first plants in a pot that was made for growing strawberries with the holes in the sides no soil just put plants in and a few stones to hold them down . i don't let them get to big ,so my fish will have plenty of room .