Water Gardens
Creating an oasis of peace and tranquility, water gardens have a beauty all their own. Miniature or large, with aquatic plants blooming on their still surface, or with a trickling stream as part of the landscape, there is a "spirit" to water gardens that just can't be captured in any other form.
Location:
Most aquatic plants love the sun. The warmer the water, the more luxuriant the growth and the greater the number of blooms. If you are planning on having fish or other aquatic creatures, however, be sure to check their requirements regarding temperature and oxygenation before beginning your pool. Water that is too shallow can become too hot in the summer, and freeze solid in the winter, which would also kill the roots of hardy water lilies. Varying depths in which plants can grow and creatures can hide tend to work the best.
Care must also be taken to locate the pool some distance from trees or hedges so that the water doesn't become fouled with dead leaves. As an alternative, you can put screen mesh over the pond during the fall.
Wherever you decide to place your pool, do make sure it gets plenty of light. Use a hose to mark out the edges of a proposed pool, then watch the path of the sun each day so that you can check how the reflections off the water's surface will fall. Also, by using a hose to mark out the boundaries, you will be able to tell if your proposed garden pond is visible from terraces, patios, and the windows of your home.
Types of Garden Pools:
Water gardens tend to be either formal or informal. Formal pools look better in conventional surroundings and do not blend with natural features such as wild gardens and rock gardens. Keep the vegetation in them low, concentrating on water lilies and submerged and floating aquatics.
An informal pool should not obviously disclose its location. The concrete or other material of which it is made can be hidden by keeping the outer edges below the level of the surrounding ground, and by the skillful use of bog and marginal aquatics to bridge the gap between the water and dry land.
Construction Of Water Gardens:
The principle types of water garden construction from which to choose are:
More than one type of water garden can be incorporated into the creation of your idyllic setting.
Planting out the Pool:
Water lilies are a must for most garden pools. They present an endless array of choices: from hardy lilies native to Asia, Europe and North America (along with all the beautifully colored hybrids), to the warmer climate species from North Africa which are quite flamboyant. Most of the lilies that flower in the daytime are fragrant.
There are two methods of growing water lilies in artificial pools:
- Method 1
Place a 5 - 6 inch bed of prepared soil over the bottom of the pool and plant them directly; later covering the bed with an inch or two of sand or gravel before running in the water until it just barely covers the top of the plant.
After a few days, add another inch or two of water to the pool. Continue in this way until the pool is full. This cautious procedure is necessary, for the water lilies, having sustained the shock of transplanting, may be checked or set back by the running in of a large amount of cold water.
The disadvantage of this method is that when it comes time to lift or divide the plants, the water gets all churned up and muddy. When planting directly into the pool, make quite sure that the soil is in moist, even sticky condition. This insures firm planting, for dry soil does not bind effectively, and once water is added to it, the roots often become dislodged and float.
Plant lilies according to the kind of roots they have. Place lilies with rhizomes (roots like an iris) horizontally and set firmly, with the growing points of the shoots just protruding from the soil. Barely cover the top of the rhizome with soil. The other types, which include all the marliacea varieties, have a root something like celery. Plant these up to the collar, with the roots going straight down into the soil.
- Method 2
The second method is to plant the water lilies directly into containers. These can be made from galvanized wire, wood slats, or concrete. Although not so long-lasting as other containers, wicker baskets, with their loosely woven sides, allow the water to come into contact with the soil. If boxes of wood or concrete are used, make sure that there are holes in the sides and base. There are even specially made aquatic planters for gardeners to use.
Firm planting is even more essential for this method. Leave sufficient room in the basket to topdress the soil with an inch or two of sand or gravel. This prevents fish from disturbing the mud and clouding the water, and keeps debris from floating to the surface. Use a heavy fibre free topsoil mixed with well decayed manure as your potting mixture. Plant into the pot so that the rhizomes or rootstocks are just under the soil surface.
Do not economize on the soil, because these plants are heavy feeders and need a good, heavy loam or clay soil enriched with 1/6 of its bulk in decayed cow manure. The manure must be at least 12 months old. If this is unavailable, there are special fertilizers especially made for garden ponds. Do not introduce any of the organic materials normally associated with potting soil such as leaf mold, compost and peat. These will break down and encourage algae, discolor the water, and may even make your pond smell putrid from the escaping gas caused by the decomposition of the material. Needless to say, it would also kill your fish.
New plants should be placed in the pool with only two centimeters of water covering the pot in order that the sunlight can reach the young plant. An alternative is to fill the pool first - preferably some days previously so that the water warms up - and stand the baskets on bricks or concrete blocks so that the crowns of the lilies are just below water level. As growth proceeds, lower these platforms gradually until the baskets rest on the bottom of the pool. When well-established, water lilies like about 35cm of water above the pot.
To maintain a proper chemical balance for fish it is important to plant oxygenating plants such as Sagittaria, Vallisneria, Myriophyllum or Elodia species. These are underwater plants and can be planted near the edge of the pond by pushing the tuberous roots deep into the mud or bottom soil of the pool.
Then there are the BOG plants that thrive on the verges of the pool and in moist and boggy ground. Plants like the Gunnera with its enormous leaves look magnigicent interspersed with plants of the Primula and Cyperus families. Depending on your climate, there are many other plants that you can utilise in and near your pool to make a feature that is unsurpassed.
Cleaning The Garden Pond:
From time to time, small pools need to be emptied and replanted, chiefly because the water lilies exhaust the soil and the flowers become fewer and smaller. Occasionally, the plants also need division. Empty the pool, rinse it out and replant with fresh soil.
Winter Care of Water Gardens:
During the winter months, all garden pools which are strong enough and sufficiently deep to avoid freezing solidly should be kept full of water. This is the best insurance against frost damage to plants and fish.
If possible, keep a hole open in the ice to give fresh air to any fish the pool contains. As the temperature drops, however, the fishs' metabolism slows down, so they will not require as much food or oxygen as during the hot summer months. When opening a hole in the ice do not bang the ice with a heavy hammer. This can shock and kill fish, and injure the pool itself by causing cracks in the material. Instead, float a ball or piece of wood on the surface, lift it out every day, and gently chip away the ice around the hole.
In regions where small and shallow pools may freeze solidly if left filled with water, drain the pool in the fall, fill it with dry leaves, and cover it with wooden shutters. Pile a foot or two of leaves on the shutters and hold in place with branches or chicken wire. Keep the fish or other creatures in a sufficiently large aquarium. Goldfish, for example, require 2 gallons of water for every inch of fish! They also require an ample surface region for sufficient oxygen exchange.
Other Water Garden Articles your might be interested in:
Fantastic Fish Ponds - How to Make Sure Your Fish Are Livin' The Good Life - by Terri Horsmann
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