All About Water Gardens

Enjoy the sounds, the movement, the aroma that only water can add to your life, home, thoughts & dreams. Water can give an enormous boost to relaxation time. Not everyone has the opportunity to relax seaside but even so, the benefit of water moving can be added to your landscape with a little imagination. In order to enjoy the beauty of the garden a filter for crystal clear water and of course water plants are a must.There are the lovely & majestic lilies which cover a huge amount of the surface, the oxyengenators which of course add oxygen to the water, marginals and floating plants such as hyacinths with lovely lilac colored flowers.

Before you arrive at the watergarden center to purchase the necessary items, stop for a moment and take another look at your property. Be sure you know what you want & where you want to put it. Do you have cliff rock to contend with, buried pipes or a waterlogged area[not a good place for a watergarden,believe it or not] Will you be able to enjoy the view of this garden from your home, patio or other recreation area.Is it to be by your front or back door?  Make sure it allows for easy access both to the garden & the doors.

To measure for your liner the formula is:

length +2 x the depth + 2′ for edging [yes you need this much]
width + 2 x the depth + 2′ for edging

You should plan on 3-4′ for depth for overwintering fish. So if your pond is 12′ long x 10′ wide & is 3′ deep-the size of your liner would be 20 x 18′ Don’t skimp on your liner because the weight of the water will pull it down 45 mil rubber liner EPDM has a 20 year guarantee, if installed according to manufacturers instruction .With the proper underliner it will not be toxic to the fish.

To measure the gallons of your pond using the above measurements,the formula is

length x width x depth x 7.5=2700 gallons of water

Sizing your pump-using the same measurements

To maintain a health pond you need to circulate the water every 2 hours meaning a1400 gph pump. This will circulate the water & run a small fountainI. f you decide to create a waterfall or stream that is 2′ above ground & the pond is 3′ deep, that is a rise of 5′. Your 1400gph pump with a waterfall now becomes 2200-2800 gph. It is always a good idea to oversize your pump so it doesn’t have to work as hard.

Filtration- if you have fish or even if not it will most likely be necessary to use a good filtering system.

If your pond is 2700 gallon, I would recommend nothing less than a 3000 gallon pressurized filter. Personal example- we have here on our property at Village Nursery a pond approx. 1500 gallons, with a waterfall. The pond is 3-4′ deep. I had a 2000 gallon pressurized filter and it worked perfectly until mid August.Every year when the water was very warm the filtering system would no longer be effective.I need to say I also am overstocked with fish and the watergarden is in the full sun. We had to put in another 2000 gallon filter and we have had super clear water ever since  note: if your pond is in full sun and overstocked with fish you need to increase pump & filter size for the best effect If using plant material to help remove algae the following is a guideline for the amount of plants you will need Another filtration design is using a smaller more natural watergarden which consists of different grades of stone Large stone,3″ on the bottom then grading up to 2″ in the middle & then 1″ on the top..the water first flows through thisfiltering ‘system & gives a more natural effect.

Test Kit– it is also a must to have a test kit to keep an eye on the pH of the water. Neutral is 7.
I have had 2 bad experiences with this problem & lost fish both times.

Watergardens can be a very rewarding experience and not overwhelmening. The idea is to have a plan, know what you want and what you have to work with.
Enjoy this spring summer & fall with the added benefit of more of mother nature
If you have any further questions please feel free to contact us.