New pond and waterfalls my first one!

14 years ago

Hi there everyone! I've been wanting a pond with waterfalls for some time now so this year it has been my garden project! Here is a pic of the corner in my backyard where i will be building them:

And this is the beginning of the digging! My pond is going to be fairly small 4' x 6' but i am so excited!

Another one, The soil here has a lot of clay so the digging went slowly but it went!

Still going.....

And going....

Now we are getting there!

Underlining it....

Now for the real liner!

I couldn't wait to fill it up!

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I had to change the rocks to flagstones for the spill stones because the rocks i used were too big and the water didn't want to go over even with foam behind and under them!!Agghh!

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Well the waterfalls are still not completely done, as you can see the water is only going over half of the bottom spill stone and under the middle one so i am going to put some foam behind them and play some more! I will post more as i go, thanks for looking!

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Comments (9)

flora2b
14 years ago
Great progression pics. Looks great!!!
Isn't ponding fun?
Flora
bluesunflower
14 years ago
That is so cool! I can feel your excitement. I am looking forward to seeing your progression. It looks like you are off to a wonderful start. Soon you will be posting questions about what to do with this horrible algae bloom messing up your crystal clear water, then it will be why are my fish doing this? ;-) A great big welcome to the world of ponding. You're going to love it!
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I have family in Austin - I love Texas. Illinois has about 2 1/2 feet of dark rich soil - then it's all clay and rock from there. I attempted my first masonry job around the skippy - being no expert, the job is taking much longer, but I'm having a blast learning. What about some type of landscape timber? I've seen raised ponds using these that look very natural. I actually have two pumps - the first is a pondmaster with a pre-filter attached and a fountain attachment - I have that one in the 2 foot section of the pond. The pump leading to the skippy is actually a waterfall pump... CalPump PW-4500 Submersible Pond Pump. I know it's overkill, but I figured if I ever wanted to add on or enlarge the pond, I'd have the power to do it. I have the pump sitting in a plastic crate stuffed to the brim with white shop rags I bought from our local warehouse club. The spillway is filled with Lava Rock. It works for me... basically everything I've done so far has been trial and error - but that is what makes this so much darn fun.
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Hi Flora, thanks for your comments, the rocks are single ones, to make the stepped stream i used 4 small pathing stones then placed the rocks along the sides then so it did'nt look to flat on the surface of the pathing stones i cemented the top of them and ran my fingers through it to make it look more natural then added the small pebbles when it had all set i used pond sealer to waterproof the cement so no lime escapes into the water all this was built on top of pond liner so if any water does escape it should find it's way back to the pond, i understand what you say about the stones in the bottom but i could'nt resist, i've started putting some in,and have some more yet to add, i've got some especialy for use in ponds, it's like a coral type stone, it's good for good bacteria to live in wich will help to act as a natrual filter i've also started to add some plants (oxygenators) wich you can see in the deep end and ther are 6 floating plants (frogbit) wich will multiply and create some shade for the fish when i get around to buying some, also on the left of the pond i've made a path type thingy lol out of mortar wich when it sets hard i will remove the black plastic bag from underneath, waterproof it and then place it back on the pondside and fill it right up, it does'nt look like it from the picture but it is moulded into small step like slopes so any wild life that goes in can climb out, like frogs and newts and anything else that jumps in for a swim, thought i'd do this as the edging stones overhang and nothing would be able to get out, i've put some more photos up to look at, i know it still looks abit bare but hopefully when everything starts to multiply and grow it should start to look better i just need to be patiant and wait.
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annedickinson
14 years ago
Violet,

Everything is looking good. Yeah, it's not fun to have to test and tweak and test and tweak to get it "just right" but it is worth it in the end. You are doing a great job.
Anne
Calamity_J
14 years ago
Way to go!!! Just persevere!!! I am sooo busy planting up new flower beds,(got 1/2 acre to fill up!lol) that I can't seem to get to my pond!!! But you are inspiring me!!!
violet14
Original Author
14 years ago
Thanks for all the support and yes i am thoroughly addicted now! I will post more when i find my camera....i think one of my twin boys took it and hid it on me aaarrghhh! Oh well, I have now done some planting around the pond and will finish sometime this week or next!
violet14
Original Author
14 years ago
Okay i have located my camera and i have 3 more pics to post hope you all enjoy! I will be fixing the edges and also planting a japanese maple on the right side and adding mulch too soon! :) I can't wait to get some fish!!

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In this one you can see a little tree on the left, i rescued it last year from behind my shed, i have no idea what kind it is but when it starts to leaf out better i will be searching for an I.D.
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hardin
14 years ago
Looking good. You are rocking right along (no pun intended).
Calamity_J
14 years ago
Lovely! What's that stuff at the edge, under the dirt/mulch? A weed barrier? I've been planting up my yard and have been using Tons of newspaper to hold the good dirt in/act as a water holder too, for all my new plantings...nothing has even wilted once!!! We are on a serious water restriction this yr as it hasn't rained forever, and the district is worried,,,and here I'm putting in a 1800gal pond! (Been frugal with my water so I don't feel guilty when I fill my pond!lol)Your pond is a work of art! Way to Go!!! Jane
violet14
Original Author
14 years ago
Hi there Jane!
I have newspaper under the new dirt, it creates a barrier for a while and also kills the grass so if you don't need to dig too deep it makes things easier! I also like how it eventually composts itself so i am adding to the earth at the same time! I used fabric weed barrier near the back of the falls because i have been fighting a thistle infestation for a few years now, my previous neighbour just let them grow and seed and they are so hard to get rid of!! Good luck with your pond! :) I hope you get some good rainfall soon!

Violet

New pond and waterfalls my first one!

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New pond and waterfalls my first one!

Comments (9)

flora2b

bluesunflower

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