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Full Description
Build a natural pond for wildlife, beauty, and quiet contemplation
Typical backyard ponds are a complicated mess of pipes, pumps, filters, and nasty chemicals designed to adjust pH and keep algae at bay. Hardly the bucolic, natural ecosystem beloved by dragonflies, frogs, and songbirds.
The antidote is a natural pond, free of hassle, cost, and complexity and designed as a fully functional ecosystem, ideal for biodiversity, swimming, irrigation, and quiet contemplation.
Building Natural Ponds is the first step-by-step guide to designing and building natural ponds that use no pumps, filters, chemicals, or electricity and mimic native ponds in both aesthetics and functionality. Highly illustrated with how-to drawings and photographs, coverage includes:
Understanding pond ecosystems and natural algae control
Planning, design, siting, and pond aesthetics
Step-by-step guidance for construction, plants and fish, and maintenance and trouble shooting
Scaling up to large ponds, pools, bogs, and rain gardens.
Whether you're a backyard gardener looking to add a small serene natural water feature or a homesteader with visions of a large pond for fish, swimming, and irrigation, Building Natural Ponds is the complete guide to building ponds in tune with nature, where plants, insects, and amphibians thrive in blissful serenity.
Robert Pavlis , a Master Gardener with over 40 years of gardening experience, is owner and developer of Aspen Grove Gardens, a six-acre botanical garden featuring over 2,500 varieties of plants. A well-respected speaker and teacher, Robert has published articles in Mother Earth News , Ontario Gardening magazine, the widely read blog GardenMyths.com, which explodes common gardening myths and gardening information site GardenFundamentals.com.
Contents
Introduction
1. Understanding a Balanced Ecosystem
Oxygen Cycle
Nutrients
pH
Algae
Animals
Trees and Shrubs
Plants
Microbes
Maintaining Balance in the Ecosystem
2. Environmental Benefits
Pond Ecosystem
Breeding Site for Amphibians
Dragonflies and Mosquitoes
Birds and Mammals
Water Conservation
Environmental Awareness
Less Lawn
Permaculture Food Sources
3. Natural Looking Designs
Native Ponds
Man-made Ponds
How Natural Can You Get?
The Borrowed View
Enjoy the Pond
Stones, Stones, and More Stones
Plants Are Key
Your Final Design
4. Planning and Design
Location
Legal Issues
Access to Electrical Power
Size
Depth
Water Source
Bogs and Rain Gardens
Trees
Pond Liners
Human Access
Rocks
Shape of the Pond and Planting Shelves
Plants
Excavated Soil
5. Building
Site Evaluation
Soil Type
Installing a Preformed Pond
Flexible Pond Liners
Digging the Hole for a Flexible Liner
Preparing the Hole
Installing the Pond Liner
Footings for a Dock or Bridge
Adding Water
Protecting Planting Shelves
Stones for the Planting Shelf
Leveling the Pond Edge
Adding the Spillway
Allowing for Inflow
Edging the Pond
Adding the Finishing Touches
6. Fish
Fish Care
Hobby Fish
Game Fish
7. Plants
Planting
Fertilizing
Starting Small
Too Many Plants
Plant Pests and Diseases
Undesirable Pond Plants
Selection of Water Plants
Workhorse Water Plants
8. Maintenance and Troubleshooting
Don't Do These Things
Adding Water
Removing Organics
Winter Care
Pond Leaks
9. Large-scale Ponds
Special Pond Types
Regulations and Permits
Water Sources
Liner Options
General Construction Considerations
Aerators and Fountains
Constructing Dams
Designing the Inflow
Designing the Outflow
Plants
Eutrophication
10. Pools, Bogs, and Rain Gardens
Natural Swimming Pools
Bogs
Rain Gardens
References
Index
About the Author
A Note About the Publisher
