Low Cost Pond

As part of my 1998 gardening spree, I decided early on that I wanted to build a pond. I mulled over different methods of construction, but settled on a simple container: more interesting ponds require much more digging, and careful laying out of thick liner plastic (if not using pre-formed shapes). By using a simple barrel half, I could quickly and cheaply experiment with water gardening.

In the aging of scotch, barrels may be used only once and are therefore available cheaply. Most are ~2.5' in diameter, though I did find a few larger ones. I picked mine up at Home Depot for ~$35, nurseries had them at ~$37: later I saw them at a local beer and wine supply store for ~$25 -- I suspect they'd have the larger ones cheaper too. Inspect and pick one with tight slats; some would have been leaky. Fill the barrel and let it sit for a day or so to expand the wood and close any leaks.

Using the barrel as pond is an easy matter of digging a 2' hole and counter-sinking the barrel. I'm no fan of crystal clear water, so I filled 4" of the bottom of the barrel with heavy clay soil in order to promote a rich microbe life. A gravel coat over this would have left the water cleaner. They suggest you add soil, fill, and then siphon off the top in order to remove most of the tiny particulate matter: too much trouble, I live with a few inches of visibility.

Depending on your area, your water may be fine. Chlorinated water will evaporate away the chlorine in a few days. However chloramine does not evaporate and needs to be chemically removed from the water. I suggest this step for both chlorine/chloramine. I screwed up once and then had to bail it out so i could measure how many gallons I'd put in. My failure in volumetric estimation may have sent my first three fishies to Davy Jone's Locker. Establish your plants and add the fish last, even if the pond becomes a mosquito breeding ground.

List of Parts

ItemCost
Barrel$35
Chloramine Remover$5
Water Hyacinth$2.50
Frog-bit$2.50
Parrots Feather$9
Floating Heart$9
Blue Iris$6
Cheap Fish x 3$4
$73

Aquatic Plants

Water Hyacinth (Eichornia Crassipes)
Info Info
A fascinating plant, both a horrible weed and effective water purifier. Oxygenates the water. Claims to reproduce several times in the course of a summer.

Parrots Feather (Myriophyllum Aquatica)
Info
Delicate feather-like fronds extend on lengthy stalks. Closes up at night. Claims to grow to 3' (and has 1' fronds now); it'll require pruning.

Floating Heart (Nymphoides Petata)
Water Fringe
Fringed Water Lily
Info
Looks just like a minature water lily (which was the idea given my limited space). Claims to grow to 3' and may require lots of pruning.

Frog-bit (Hydrocharis morus-ranae)
Frogbit (Limnoblum laevigatus)
Limnobium spongia
There appears to be some confusion about the naming of this plant. My Frog-bit is a free floater with clusters of ~8 1/4" hairy leaves. New leaves are light green, darkening to tan. The clusters reproduce by self-division.

Small duckweed (Lemna valdiviana)
Lemna Minor
Pale Duckweed
Info Info
Tiny floating leaves, often in pairs, with a single trailing root. Good fish food.

Mosquito Fern (Azolla caroliniana)
Fairy Moss
Info Info
Tiny floating lichen like clusters, with a single trailing root.

Boggy Plants

Spiderwort (Tradescantia virginiana) Info Claims to like boggy conditions, so I have a 1/4" of pot in the water. Beautiful delicate purple flowers with a fuzzy fringe.

Blue Flag Iris (I. Versicolor)
Iris virginica
Info
I grow this submerged, but it'd be happy with a lot of moisture too.