Water Gardens

A water feature or pond is a great addition to any garden, whether it's close to the house where you can watch things grow and handy for your power supply, or in a quieter corner for nature conservation.

When selecting your pond site, avoid extremes of light and shade and it's a good idea to plan it well away from trees to avoid leaves polluting the water. If there is too much shade, then your water lilies won’t flower, and if you have small children, once your pond has been constructed, fix a sheet of strong, close-mesh wire below the surface of the water.

Shape your pond to match your garden style, you can either have a pre-formed pond, or a pond constructed using a liner. It's always a good idea to have a shallow rough side to one section of the pond so that if an animal falls in it should be able to escape without too much hassle.

You can add waterfall features if you like, or simply use your circulating water as an additional feature. Allow a shallow edge or marginal shelf in there somewhere for your pond plants. If you are considering adding fish to your pond they will need a deep-water zone of about three feet to swim comfortably.

When filling your pond, tap water is preferable to stream or rain water which may be polluted. Leave the water to stand for a day to allow all the chlorine gas to escape, and use a product especially designed to treat the water to make it safe for your fish.

If you have very limited space, you can even create a water feature from a tub, trough or old sink, it's quite cheap and a fun, quirky addition to a small garden.