Why thank you, Digger! If it wasn't for the pond forum, my husband and I would never have dreamed we could take a project like this on. We've learned huge amounts from the observations of the ponders who've shared their joys and heartaches here. It's a fabulous resource. Karen, there were days when I really felt overwhelmed and wondered if we'd *ever* get it done. As to its size, one of the things I read over and over here at the forum was that folks always felt they made their first ponds too small, so this pond is 23' long and at its widest it's 14' across. The deep end is just over 4 feet, the shallow end is 2 feet. No fish right now. I wanted to spend the first season just learning how to get the water stable. Lots of life in the pond, though--endless tadpoles, plus salamanders have bred in it. It's great to be able to watch salamanders. I'm thinking that when I do get fish I'll go with shubunkins--the beauty of koi, but a tougher fish. We have 25 acres, but have only cleared one acre and will stop there. A significant hunk of this valley has been bought by the Nature Conservancy to create a green corridor for wildlife between Quebec and Vermont. When Paul and I moved here (he grew up in this valley, but I'm a city girl) there wasn't the wildlife we see now--lots of deer, wild turkeys, some moose and now a bear. Not so thrilled by the bear which was cheeky enough to walk up on to our front porch three weeks ago. I'm still in shock over that one. I cracked up when you said you'd asked your husband to toss you under the pond liner when the day comes. Too funny :) Have you posted pictures of your yard here? If you have, could you point me to them? I'm always looking for inspiration :)

Air exchange heat pumps are only good, ( operational) to -10c. They start to bite at +5c, but are as efficient, ( the newer models) as geothermal for cooling, and for heat, within their designed operating range. Unfortunately, they use an electric heater as back up for when the temps fall below their operating range, and due to its small size and the inherent design, it is much less efficent than even proper electric baseboard heat at those temps. Geothermal are better in colder weather than heat pumps, because rather than trying to draw heat out of cold air, are drawing heat out of cool, (56 degree) soil. Other than the medium, (air vs. earth), there is little difference between geothermal and air exchange in the operating equiptment, ( compressors, exchange units, etc). The motors as yet, are major power consuming AC units, not the ultra efficient DC motors, but due to the source of the heat, geothermal is the most efficient source of electrically powered heating. With geothermal, you either need a lot of space to run a surface grid, or pay the costs of deep drilling to sink the coils in wells. Personally, the best method of heating, IMHO, is evacuated tube solar hot water radiant heat, backed up in colder climes with a demand hot water heater like a Bosch, with the thermostat set on cool, with passive solar for the day heat- evening gains. We face west, and being off grid, use evacuated tube solar hot water radiant heat, cycled through a electric hot water heater, converted to 24dc, that burns the excess solar and wind production, circulated by a efficient solar powered DC pump on its own panel. Once I added in an automatic switch to control the pump, ( the solar panel in the winter, still produces power when the solar hot water tubes are no longer producing heat), we find that this system produces all our heat and domestic hot water from April to November. We get some passive solar assist in the afternoon. The system stops providing enough heat when the outside temps reach -15c or 5F so it is backed up with a demand propane hot water heater (a Bosch). The system still provides some heat, so from December to April, the solar tubes basically pre-heat the water for the Bosch. All told, I spent $3800 for the Sunda tubes, the solar panel and DC pump, and the pump control. The DC element for the electric hot water heater was another $400, but I had to "burn off" that excess solar power somehow, and using seemed better than dumping it to a light bar. The Bosch cost another $1500, and all told, the plumbing cost about $800. I also built a Russian mass heater, ( a huge airtight fireplace that uses a quick fire, like a rocket heater, to heat a large mass of brick and stone), which we use in the winter, to boost the temps above the thermostat setting of 65F. First however, before I built any of this, we installed new windows and doors, rock wool insulation, (R32 in the walls, R50 in the ceiling), radiant heat barrier, and resheathed the exterior over R10 foam board to provide a thermal break between the studs and the sheathing. I might actually have R42 or higher in the walls! BTW, earlier a poster suggested closing off some attic vents. Dont! The attic vents keep the air moving above the insulation and prevent moisture buildup in the attic. Close off your vents and you will trap heat in the summer, baking you out of house and home, and will trap moisture in the winter, reducing the effectiveness of your insulation, and of course, growing mold. Older homes, if anything, dont have enough ventilation in the attic. If you reinsulate an older home, first make sure that you have soffit vents and good ventilation. When you reinsulate or add insulation, make sure you keep your soffit vents free and clear. For a final trick, when all your insulation is in place, top it off with a radiant heat barrier like a mylar film over the insulation. This wont do much to keep you warm in winter, but will make a huge difference in keeping you cool in summer.

I first saw them where I work. I brought home a load of clippings and must have transported them. I think they are just great! They tend to be more of a woodland dweller and now my suburban garden is tending to be a bit wild, they are at home here. I pride my self on the number of species that co-exist with me here. Along with pets, there are giant centipedes (I transplanted here from the woods], preying mantises, walking sticks, all kinds of catapillars, moths and butterflies,an occasional salamander or newt [I want more] squirrels, chipmunks[the deer and woodchucks have to peer in through the fence. A small pond made with cinder blocks and heavy plastic used to house a baby snapping turtle-he grew big enough last year and left to live in the lake down the street. Twice we have had a baby toad population explosions(woodhouses toads), we have bull and pickerel frogs that "summer' here-moving up from the pond down the street during the rain storms. When I moved here with my garden plants from the old place potted up,I must have brought both great and spring peepers. Both must be propagating themselves in the little 4x8 pond. They are now all over the neighborhood!Dragon flys almost recognize me now.This year I had orb spiders all over the place-several different species! I could go on and on with all the amazing life in my tiny 1/4 acre of gardens. Its such a pleasure to sit and watch all of my residents and visitors. Its a sign to me that Im doing things right.

Please see my photo labeled Vermont Salamander in the photo part of nature.net. it was the only way i could post a pic. I would like to know what this little salamander is. found in a stream that leads into a river immediately. creature has snake-like head and very delicate small legs/feet. Has frills at neck area. giant black spots/area where eyes are.