Garden Ponds and Aquatics.

All but the smallest of gardens can have a beautiful and functional garden pond. It adds interest and a totally new dimension to the garden, and will do more to attract you 'outside' than any other garden feature.

A pond can be a fairly substantial investment, so treat it as such. It should be an asset not a liability. A pond that will give years of enjoyment, and be a home to attractive water plants with all manner of aquatic life - fish included!

An investment for the future. Make sure that the garden pond is built correctly, in the right situation and well stocked with aquatic plants, and you too can have an are in the garden that will give you many hours - or even years - of pleasure.

There are many ways of installing a pond into your garden - either as a stand alone feature, or as an integral part of the wider plan. research well before you start the actual construction.

Some of the key aspects to bear in mind when building, or improving, your garden pond will be .... 

Position of Pond - regards to light and shade, and also ease of maintenance. Suitable viewing area - seating even! Of these, 'light' is probably the most important - and often not taken fully into account. Position of the pond is also important for full enjoyment - based upon your own ideas as to what enjoyment your pond should bring. Size of your garden pond in keeping with the rest of the garden, and your long term vision for both pond and garden. Smaller ponds are easier to to maintain; larger pods are better for health and well-being of the inhabitants.

Pond Safety - for those wishing to view the garden pond, and in particular for overall safety as far as children are concerned. Every year we hear of fatalities by drowning in a garden pond - often with water no more than a few inches deep.

Structure of pond in relation to the type of fish and plants you wish to stock. A pond for Koi fish will need to be deeper overall - or at least have a substantial area of around 1.2m (4ft) deep in order to provide sanctuary for the tender Koi in the winter months. On the other hand, a pond that is provided for mainly aquatic plants and the more ornamental types of goldfish, can be substantially shallower than this - with many varying depth.

• Pond Problems sometimes occur!

The Three most important routine operations, when keeping a stocked pond are.....

• Care of your Pond Fish - So important, yet too often ignored until a fish is seen to be in trouble or worse still, floating lifeless on the surface of the water. Panic usually results, with concerned for the other pond inhabitants!
• Pond Plant Care - Pond plants are often neglected, with the main operation being that of trying to thin-out overgrown specimens, or grappling with oxygenating submerged plants. they may all live in water, but they have specific needs as pond plants.
• Pond Cleaning and Maintenance is rightly seen as a chore! Ease of access for the maintenance that will be required. All ponds will need maintaining - normally in early spring. This falls in line  with many other things that need doing in the garden at this time! Make sure that you have good all-round access points for this essential task!

Design and Construction of the Pond.

The type of features to include - ie waterfall, fountain ornaments, lighting etc - will determine the pond design and subsequent construction. The aquatic plants to be used will also have to be taken into account - as will the type of fish you are hoping to stock.

The basic construction of the pond can be as adventurous or easy as you wish. You have the choices of above ground pond, sunken pond, and then a choice of water retention by way of concrete lined pond, butyl or plastic lined, or a preformed GRP or plastic pool.

Plan it all out properly, before you dig a single spade of soil out of what is to be your garden pond! Make sure that it is going to be an integral part of the garden - or a feature in its own right. The pond can either blend in with existing garden ideas, complement them, or make for a re-design of a particular area of the garden. If you are starting with a blank sheet - a new garden plot, then you will really have to plan it out very carefully. Ponds can rarely be moved, if placed in the wrong position!

• AZ List of Aquatics and Pond Supplies UK