Patio pond information

[likwid]

Hey guys,

I just bought a 35 gallon corner patio pond at home depot. It is essentially like a giant plastic planter, but meant to be used as a small standing pond similar to those whiskey barrel ponds.

Anyways, I would like to create a nice pond that has aquatic plants like water lilies, as well as a small fountain at the top, and eventually some fish. Would a small fountain/pump be enough for water movement? How will water lilies do with a fountain? Any places online to buy aquatic plants from?

I am looking at getting this pump/fountain for it for water movement:

lagunaponds.com/lagunaeng/powerjetpumps/pjet100a.php?link=1402

Also, before I begin filling up my pond, I was wondering what you recommend I put at the bottom? I read a few articles with some people putting gravel, some putting soil, etc. Do I need soil in there to keep aquatic plants?

Thanks

[jvision]

I have installed a few ponds, and I always use gravel. Over time, enough mulm gets down there, that you don't need to start w. soil. Plus, if you buy a lilly (which may or may not do so well in a shallow pond) it will have soil in it's pot, anyway. Just remember, the more organic material you put in, the easier it is for algae to get a foothold.

For a 35 gal pond, a small fountain will be plenty water movement. You could go with a small pump or larger powerhead.

Hope this helps a bit.

[nyb440]

The pump looks fine, although you might not even need one that large for a pond of that size. A small inline filter is a good idea, but given the size of the pond, you might find that it would take up too much room. You can probably get by with frequent water changes and just the foam sponge that comes with many fountain pumps as a prefilter to protect the impeller. If you want to keep a lily, you probably want to skip the fountain head because lilies don't do well if their leaves are kept constantly wet. Something to circulate the water, that doesn't splash much, is still a very good idea, though.

In terms of a substrate, I wouldn't use anything. As Jvision said, your plants, except floaters, should be potted. A bare pond bottom is much easier to vacuum/keep clean. Gravel can look very good when new, but can quickly become frustrating to maintain with all of the leaves and other stuff that will end up getting blown into the pond.

A word of advice, when you put in potted plants, put a shallow layer of large gravel on top. Anything the fish can pick up in their mouths/root through will quickly be scattered throughout the bottom of the pond.

[likwid]

Thanks for all the great help guys! If I decide to go with gravel at the bottom of my tank, do I have to rinse it well first? I have a ton of gravel in my front yard that I could scoop up and put into the pond.

Also, I went to the local greenhouse and they do have water lilies there, however their pads were fairly brown and no lilies were blooming at the moment. You could see new stalks starting to come out from the base though. Is it still fine to buy one of these and hope they will bloom this year? Will the pads stay brown the rest of the year?

Thanks.

[nyb440]

Yes, I'd say rinse any gravel that you put in there. Sure, it will settle with time, but it's worth the effort to avoid starting off with a cloudy pond. And, if your gravel has been in the front yard for a while, and may have some fertilizers on it, there's another reason to give it a rinse.

As far as the lilies go, if they're still in the greenhouse in late July, they're probably not in the best of health. That being said, they can probably be nursed back to health with some fertilizer tabs and sunshine, but I wouldn't expect flowers. I've actually had better luck starting with tubers, even the dry ones from Wal-Mart, than full grown plants, for whatever reason. Although, it's a bit late to start them that way. Try to find an early blooming lily, if you can. I'm not sure what part of "Southern Alberta" you're in, but in Calgary, the growing season is too short for some lilies. My 'attraction' lilies will flower about mid-August, but my 'chromatella' lilies normally produce buds in early September that never get a chance to open.

[likwid]

Thanks for the speedy responses. I apologize for all the questions. I have had many fish tanks, and have always wanted a pond, but living in a condo, I can only have a free-standing pond, and it is hard to find good information for smaller ponds like this. I am in Lethbridge, by the way, so we should get quite a bit more light and warmer weather than most of alberta.

The lilies (hardy lily) at the greenhouse are potted, but they are in shallow water, and the pad only goes up a few inches from the pot. Will this be a problem, considering they will be fully submerged in my pond since it is a few feet deep? What other aquatic plants do you recommend I throw into my pond that will be beneficial and look good this time of year? The local greenhouse has quite a lot to choose from, hyacinths, water lettuce, etc.

Edited July 26, 2008 by likwid

[nyb440]

The short leaves on the lilies won't be a problem, they'll grow to the right height pretty quickly. In terms of other plants, you'll probably find that the lily takes up most, if not all, of the surface area once it gets going. For other plants, the choice is really up to you, both the hyacinths and water lettuce should do well. I've also had very good luck with frogbit. Another floater is duckweed, which some people say is a real nuisance. When I tried it, I had enough to cover the entire surface of the pond, and in four hours had not one leaf left, and some very plump and happy goldfish.

Does your pond have a ledge? That would be a good place for a couple of marginal plants like irises, rushes, etc.

[likwid]

I have attached a few photos of the pond to give you a better idea of what I have to work with here. I think I will try out the water lily at the greenhouse, and hope it will get healthy again. I think I will also purchase some water lettuce and hyacinths to cover some of the surface. As for a ledge, there isnt too much to work with, other than a couple inches as you can see in the pictures. Hopefully adding those plants and the small fountain will be enough to create a beautiful pond.

That being said, seeing what I have to work with, do you have any suggestions on what you would do to create a beautiful and sustainable pond?

[nyb440]

Given the amount of space in there, you likely won't have more surface area than the lily will take up. For this year though, it probably won't be a problem to have other plants in there since the lily isn't going to take over the pond overnight. One thing that you might consider doing for aesthetics is to move the pond a couple of inches away from the wall, and hang a couple of railing planters (if you can get ones short enough) off the straight sides where you could put some grasses, etc. Of course, that's entirely up to your preference.

All that aside, it looks like a nice way to put a compact pond in a small space. Maybe I should consider one for my own patio.

Edited July 26, 2008 by nyb440

[jvision]

If you can find some Parrots Feather (Myriophylum aquaticum), it's a nice stem plant that can be draped over the front of your pond - just put the bottom couple inches in the water, and the rest will do fine. Actually, many of the Pennywort stems that are often sold for cheep at stores grow nicely out of the water, too.

[likwid]

Thanks for all the great help guys. I have filled up the pond, added a small fountain with beautiful green lights at night, as well as a bunch of water lettuce and hyacinths. I think I am going to go with nyb440's idea and build a plant ledge around to fill with some nice plants and grasses.

With that all said and done, I would also like to add some fish to this pond. If I were to add a couple small koi and goldfish, how long will they be able to survive in this pond before having to bring them indoors?

[jvision]

I wouldn't add koi, as they'll be too big right off the hop. But, you could start w. some very small (feeder) goldfish, and they'll do well for the summer. You could probably add some other fish that won't outgrow the pond in a season or less. Paradise fish, White Clouds, etc.

[likwid]

Would I be able to add just 1 very small koi fish, or is there no chance for it in a 35 gallon pond? Also, how long would I be able to keep these fish out in the pond before having to bring them in? Should I add a heater of some sort?

[jvision]

If you get fish that are cold tollerant, you can keep them out there 'til the water drops to the low 50s. You can try a koi....

[gobies et al]

If you are wanting to put fish in your patio pond check out this thread. Lots of suggestions there.

http://albertaaquatica.com/index.php?showtopic=19361

Is your pond in a sunny location? Maybe try filling with water and see what temperatures you get over a course of a number of days. How great a temperature swing is there? A 35 gallon patio tank is going to have much wider temperature fluctuations than an in ground tank.

Unless you are prepared to build an outside pond 500 gallons + next year, do not get koi. Of the fish on the thread, the hardiest is probably Comet or Sarassa goldfish. They come in some beautiful colors from Red & White to golds. They usually max out at under 10 inches.

Good luck with your pond!