Above ground ponds can be built in any water tight large container.
Starting a small garden pond.
The wildlife trust says that you should have a minimum of 4 5 square metres of water which would be a pond about 6ft across.
Dig your pond so the the edges gradually taper down if possible.
A natural slope from the water s edge is the best solution.
A backyard garden pond with running water floating plants and darting fish can make a bland space breathtaking.
This will depend on the size and depth of the pond if you need to buy materials like rocks to line the pond and the cost of any landscaping and plants both for the pond and surrounding it.
When the hole is dug make sure there aren t any stones or sharp objects that could puncture the lining.
Your pond will need an access area for frogs and other creatures to get in and out.
Dig out an area for your pond according to the plan that you are following.
Gather the necessary materials like pond underlayment pond liner a shovel coping stones a filter system and pond plants.
We ll use pond foam to seal things together.
Keeping it attractive and trouble free takes work but with a little extra care at the planning and building stages you can create a pond that s almost maintenance free.
You can buy these from garden centres or specialist pond suppliers.
I made my above ground pond by building a raised garden bed and inserting a prefabricated pond form like the one pictured above also called a rigid pond liner.
You could build an inground 4 6 foot pond using a pond form and a submersible pump for a few hundred dollars.
How to build a small pond.
This pond was built in an old hot tub.
These galvanized water troughs are a popular choice right now.
Plant up your pond.
Building your own small pond.
This will help to keep the pond healthy and clean.
For this pond we re using large flagstones filling in and supporting them with smaller beach pebbles.
You only need one or two plants.
Now watch and wait.
Choose a location a miniature garden pond should be located where it can get four to six hours of sunlight.
But the rspb says that any water is helpful.
Line the interior of the pond with the pond underlayment and liner.
Use a very low nutrient soil you can buy special soil for ponds mixed with grit.
And the wildlife themselves seem to agree.
Great plants for small ponds include miniature waterlily nymphaea pygmaea helvola lesser spearwort ranunculus flammula starwort callitriche stagnalis flowering rush butomus umbellatus click here for more plant ideas.
Submerged pondweed is vital to help the pond stay clear always use native plants in ponds rigid hornwort and whorled water milfoil are recommended.
Build up the waterfall and fill in the area around the pond with rocks to make it look more natural and hide the liners.
Avoid placing the pond where runoff from rain will run into the water.
Even a washing up bowl is big enough to be a wildlife pond.
We re also using egg rock and pea gravel.
The space you dig should have a depth of at least 2 feet.
