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Garden Gate:  He said "Yes to 3 Ponds" If I  |
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bboopster
True Blue Farmgirl
1140 Posts
Betty Jo
West Bend
Wisconsin
USA
1140 Posts |
 Posted - Apr 07 2009 : 3:20:45 PM
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My DHubby told me 10 years ago when I asked for a pond "Not unless pigs fly!!!!" Well he must of had a vision. Today he agreed to a 3 pond landscaping in front of our house. Of course I had to agree to maintain this area and NO!!! Fish. Water plants are OK. I need help. I need first hand advice. We live in zone 5. Thanks for any help.
http://www.bboopster.blogspot.com
Nana to 1 with 3 on the way.
3 Blue Star Mother and Proud of it!
Pray for our troops to come home safe and soon.
Enjoying the road to the simple life :>) |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
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DaisyFarm
True Blue Farmgirl
1646 Posts
Diane
Victoria
BC
Canada
1646 Posts |
Posted - Apr 07 2009 : 7:06:45 PM
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I have three ponds Betty Jo and will help you where I can. One of my ponds is a plant pond, one is a 5' deep koi pond and the other is a 2' deep fish pond.
I think your DH might have to reconsider the fish though, unless you want a fantastic breeding place for mosquitoes. How you approach this with him is up to you!! LOL In the plant pond, I put about twenty, 25 cent goldfish in it and no mosquito larva. There is another reason for the fish as well...they create the balance you need to keep your water clean and your pond algae free. Fish poop = fertilizer for plants = more plant growth = more natural filtration = cleaner water.
Have you thought about what kind of filtration system you will use? I made my own with a plastic 45 gallon drum for less than a quarter of what a commercial filtration system will cost and there are tons of plans online to make your own. Just don't let some of the more technical websites put you off, some folks REALLY get into their ponds and fish in a big way.
I wish you lived closer, I would give you some lilies to get you started.
Di |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
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DaisyFarm
True Blue Farmgirl
1646 Posts
Diane
Victoria
BC
Canada
1646 Posts |
Posted - Apr 07 2009 : 11:25:27 PM
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LOL Yep, some people really do get into their pond science! However I suppose if I had hundreds of dollars worth of fish I might be a little more technical too!
I have a drain with a ballcock valve to flush off the bottom (like in the fall if it gets leaves in it).
The placement of your filtration requires a little planning when you are designing your ponds for grade and elevation...the "water runs downhill" thing. :)
My filtration for the plant pond is pretty simple. I have a 45 gallon heavy plastic drum which I sank in the ground, with about 5" above ground so dirt doesn't get kicked into it. Into the bottom of the drum is a submersible pump. On top of the pump is the bio-filtration mats which I cut into circles to fit tightly to the sides of the drum. There are probably 8 or so layers. On top of those are mechanical filtration mats, another 8 layers or so. The difference between the two mat types is just the course-ness. Cleaning is pretty simple - pull out the mats, hose them down and put them back. Don't worry about getting your bio-filtration mats really clean though, as they are the home of all the beneficial bacteria.
So the pump pumps water out of the bottom of the drum through a hidden hose up to the top pond and I have a little fountain. The water drains from the top pond down a little "river" of sorts (about 20 feet) into the lower pond where a hidden pipe drains off the overflow into the drum filter.
Actually, if you go to http://daisyfarm.blogspot.com I think the bottom pic shows the plant pond as we were building it. The other pic (the one with my darling Lily in the waterfall!) is the koi pond and it's filtration system is under the deck on the right. It's a little more involved, but I'll tell you how we did it if you're interested.
Hope this isn't too confusing. I can post better pics if you like.
Di
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
Posted - Apr 08 2009 : 08:19:05 AM
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No that is great! My parents built a waterfall and pond in their yard and have been having problems with it so they are looking to re-vamp it. I will have to forward this thread to my mom!
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
www.awarmheart.com
Please come visit Nora and me on our blog: www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com
Put your pin on the farmgirl map! www.farmgirlmap.blogspot.com |
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Sage
True Blue Farmgirl
207 Posts
Pam
Worland
Wyoming
USA
207 Posts |
Posted - Apr 08 2009 : 09:08:33 AM
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Diane; My daughter, Alee, told me about this topic. Which is very interesting because we have a water feature that is driving me crazy!!!!! Maybe you can help us.
We tried to revamp an old pond to make a pondless waterfall and a stream but we can't keep it from leaking. Our waterfall is right by our house so we have to stop the leaks before we can use the water feature.
We lined the "waterfall" area and stream bed with sand and then two layers of pond liner (unfortunately the liner was not all one piece). The pump is plumbed into a plastic water drum but the pond liner does not go under the drum but is sealed to the top of the drum. I have done a lot of research and can't find anything that really looks like it will help. Do you have any suggestions or resources we could use to fix our problems? Thanks Sage :)
Farmgirl sister #140
www.heritagedesigns.etsy.com |
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ddmashayekhi
True Blue Farmgirl
4739 Posts
Dawn
Naperville
Illinois
USA
4739 Posts |
Posted - Apr 08 2009 : 12:34:59 PM
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I'm so jealous! I wish we could put a pond in. Keep us posted on yours! Have fun doing it!
Dawn in IL |
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DaisyFarm
True Blue Farmgirl
1646 Posts
Diane
Victoria
BC
Canada
1646 Posts |
Posted - Apr 08 2009 : 8:05:30 PM
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Ahhh yes, the leak in the stream. I wish I could say I don't know much about this, unfortunately I do!! Probably the easiest way Pam, would be to let the area around it get good and dry (maybe later in the spring?) and then slowly start it running. Watch it like a hawk to see where it first becomes wet. That's about the best I can suggest I'm afraid, unless somebody can suggest something simpler. I had a definite wet spot next to the stream, so I just stopped the flow, dug it up, fixed the leak and started it running again. My leak was where I had attempted to join the liner to an old pond form midstream.
There are a lot of products on the market for sealing up the leaks though and many are really easy to use. If you don't have fish, there is even a product that will seal a leak underwater. The best thing is to go to a pond store, garden nursery, etc. and see what they carry. There are fish safe silicone sealers that you can use with a caulking gun.
Hope this helps!
Di |
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DaisyFarm
True Blue Farmgirl
1646 Posts
Diane
Victoria
BC
Canada
1646 Posts |
Posted - Apr 08 2009 : 8:07:57 PM
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Dawn you could even have a pond in a half barrel on your patio. I've seem some really cute ones that people have made with miniature waterfalls and a lily or two, plus a couple of little goldfish. They are really quite nice.
Di |
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bboopster
True Blue Farmgirl
1140 Posts
Betty Jo
West Bend
Wisconsin
USA
1140 Posts |
Posted - Apr 09 2009 : 3:44:46 PM
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Hey Diane thanks for the info. Sorry it has taken me so long to get back to you. I am working 4 jobs right now but enough about that. The fish thing is because of we live in the woods and he is afraid of raccoons and skunks. We are also using roofing rubber so that's not good for fish we have been told but it is free. Maybe cheap gold fish would be OK. He just has this aversion to fish but he hates mosquitoes even more they love him so much. I love the filter idea. He love to do that kind of build it stuff. I wish you lived closer too I would love help with the plants. What do you do with the plants come winter, and the pump system? How big is your pump? What did you use to line your ponds and river? Do you have any lighting? I'll check out your blog. Thanks again!!!
http://www.bboopster.blogspot.com
Nana to 1 with 3 on the way.
3 Blue Star Mother and Proud of it!
Pray for our troops to come home safe and soon.
Enjoying the road to the simple life :>) |
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DaisyFarm
True Blue Farmgirl
1646 Posts
Diane
Victoria
BC
Canada
1646 Posts |
Posted - Apr 11 2009 : 10:20:10 AM
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I well know the problems with wildlife Betty Jo! We have raccoons and herons, but the WORST BY FAR is mink. They are horrid, not only for our fish, but our laying hens as well. Everything around here has to be built like Ft.Knox! But enough grumbling...we use a black pond net on the koi pond which works fine providing we are really careful to secure it around the edges.
Pond plants - I don't know how cold it gets where you are so that would make a big difference in how you overwinter them. I am able to just cut mine back and leave them in the pond, but our winters are comparatively mild.
Pumps - we remove the pumps in the winter as there is no need to circulate when the water gets too cold. Pumps are generally rated in GPH (gallons per hour)...they circulate the water at so many GPH and you can get a fairly good estimate of how many gallons your pond is with some simple calculations. I can give you the calculation if you want it.
Liner - we used pond liner for our ponds as we knew we wanted fish. If you know somebody in the nursery/landscaping business and you want pond liner, see if they can order it for you wholesale as it's not cheap (at least not here).
Lighting is not necessary, but it sure looks pretty and there's a wide variety available. I have a couple inexpensive solar lights (I think they came from Walmart!) beside the waterfall.
One last thought, will your pond freeze in the winter? I use a really cheap aquarium pump with an air bubbler on the end just to keep the water surface from freezing if we get a cold snap.
Di
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bboopster
True Blue Farmgirl
1140 Posts
Betty Jo
West Bend
Wisconsin
USA
1140 Posts |
Posted - Apr 25 2009 : 09:20:06 AM
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Hello Diane, could you tell me where you got your instructions for you filter system. My DH is interested in looking at them. I love the pics of your water garden. We get to about -15 during the winters here so I will have to do some more research on how to winter plants. Thanks for the info. 
http://www.bboopster.blogspot.com
Nana to 1 with 3 on the way.
3 Blue Star Mother and Proud of it!
Pray for our troops to come home safe and soon.
Enjoying the road to the simple life :>) |
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bboopster
True Blue Farmgirl
1140 Posts
Betty Jo
West Bend
Wisconsin
USA
1140 Posts |
Posted - May 10 2009 : 08:18:38 AM
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Well the bricks have been delivered and construction will start in the near future. Been reading lots of books and articles. Can any of you tell me what plants you enjoy in your water features. I live in zone 5. How do you winter your plants or do you just get new ones each year? Thanks
http://www.bboopster.blogspot.com
Nana to 1 with 3 on the way.
3 Blue Star Mother and Proud of it!
Pray for our troops to come home safe and soon.
Enjoying the road to the simple life :>) |
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Garden Gate: He said "Yes to 3 Ponds" If I |
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He said "Yes to 3 Ponds" If I
