Do I have enough plants (to keep my water clear)?

[Phaewryn]

See BOLD for TLDR;
So, all you bog filter plant-pushing devotees (that's like, most of you, lol), will one small creeping jenny and one small marsh marigold in my waterfall cascades be "enough" plants to keep my 65ish gallon pond/waterfall in mostly shade (sun after 2pm) clear with some fancy guppies in it? The plants are brand new, just planted, and I assume will grow quickly. There are currently no plants in the pond itself, and I'm curious if I really do need to spend $50 on ordering pond plants online? All the online pond supply places have minimum quantities, so while I only need 1 of each thing, I'm having to buy FIVE of each which makes it a huge investment, plus the shipping is nearly $20 by itself! I really do not have the money to spare, and I did order a packet of water forget-me-not seeds which I plan to start as soon as they arrive in the mail. So far there are two adult guppies and a handful of babies (oopsie, didn't know one of them was bred). Do I really need more plants right away? I've already spent about $200 on landscaping/garden this month and while I'll do it if I must, I'm questioning if "I must"? Will my creeping jenny and marsh marigold grow fast enough to do the trick? Will I be able to start water forget-me-not from seeds quickly enough to make a difference (plus how long it will take the seeds to arrive - I just ordered them today)? Or do you think I really need more plants asap? I have decided to try Lemon Bacopa and Rotala Rotundafolia first if I have to order pond plants as those can both be submerged or emergent so I can just throw them in and decide where to plant them later - if I need them at all. I'd really like to focus on paying down my credit card if possible.

I do also have a box pre-filter before the pump with a carbon pad and activated carbon pellets, and a bio-filter bag of misc bio-media in the waterfall box, and if I put a minor amount of work into it, it does clear up quickly as shown below (photo about 3 hours after cleaning pre-filter, wiping pond sides (because it was yellow/brown from all the pollen), and dumping in more muddy pea gravel (yes, in that admittedly poor order, I swear I rinsed it but apparently not enough).

Link: video of current plants in pond (shows size of creeping jenny, about a small handful, this and the marsh marigold were the only pond plants I could source locally)

Photo of pond right now
(creeping jenny is mostly hiding from this angle, but it's in the middle cascade peeking out from behind the lighter colored rocks on the right):

Also, I broke the flower branch off my Bleeding Heart (in the foreground) while cleaning my filter today. Does anyone know if it will it grow another flower this year? I'm so bummed about that. It was the nicest flower I had so far (planted last year, so 2 year old plant).

 

[mrsclem]

You don't need to spend a fortune on pond plants. A lot of regular plants do well in water. Check your local grocery store produce department for watercress. Doesn't need to have roots, just stick the stems in the water and watch it take over. Check Neighborhood websites for any pond owners or Craigslist. People are usually willing to share excess plants. Hostas, impatiens also do well. I always check the reduced plant section at Lowes, have got some bargains for $1.

 

[Phaewryn]

You don't need to spend a fortune on pond plants. A lot of regular plants do well in water. Check your local grocery store produce department for watercress. Doesn't need to have roots, just stick the stems in the water and watch it take over. Check Neighborhood websites for any pond owners or Craigslist. People are usually willing to share excess plants. Hostas, impatiens also do well. I always check the reduced plant section at Lowes, have got some bargains for $1.

I do have access to all the hostas I want! How do I plant those in the pond? Does the crown need to be out of the water for hostas? I don't have immediate access to water planting pots, but I can cut slits in the black temporary pots my flowers came in and put some rocks on the shelf to bring them closer to the surface (and if they need a much larger pot, I can order those on Amazon).

I don't think I've ever seen watercress, unless maybe it's one of the things in spring mix salad? I'll carefully look at the grocery next time I go, but I doubt they have it. It's a pretty small produce section so it doesn't have lots of fancy rare things. It does look like I can buy seed for it though.

I've asked on Freecycle and the local waterway organization, who connected me to two local "pond people", but they both have giant ponds (like trout ponds), not ornamental ponds. The only plants they could offer (swamp grass and cattails) were much too large for my little 2x5' less than 2' deep pond (the waterway organization also gave me an uninvited speech about invasives).

If I knew all the regular plants that would grow in ponds, I might find something on Freecycle or Facebook marketplace, but no-one seems to have little ornamental ponds in this area. I'd need to know exactly what plants to ask for. I have tried asking for pond or water plants and got nothing except irises, which I don't want since they could make the water toxic to cats - but now that I have a marsh marigold I guess I already have to keep carbon in the pond so I could add irises maybe (I really hate to risk the life of my "helpers"). Are there any other bulbs that can do well in water? I do have a few bulbs from the clearance rack from last fall that have not been planted anywhere yet. There is no community group (other than Freecycle and on Facebook) for my little town, at least not on Craigslist or that I know of. Even if there was, all the people here hate me. I got told last week on Facebook (after picking up food distributions and delivering it to the needy, no less) that I am "the sort of trash Springfield doesn't need" (a lot of this part of the state is very conservative and I am LBGT). All the people on Craigslist are on the other side of the state, in the city, it seems, and I don't have a car and my partner who gives me rides is not going to put 250 miles on his car to pick up a pond plant (which I could just order online since the gas and mileage to get there would cost just as much). There are no Lowes here. I did look at Home Depot when I was in the city, and they had no water plants that I knew of at the time - they probably did have impatiens, but I didn't know those would work and I won't have a ride to the city (Claremont, New Hampshire at 30 miles, Keene, New Hampshire at 70 miles, or Lebanon, New Hampshire at 70 miles) for a while since we just went. I'll keep an eye on the small plant selection the local grocery has out front sometimes, maybe they will get some impatiens.

 

[mrsclem]

I have hostas in my bog so just the roots in water.

 

[Tula]

Elephant ear, green taro ....grows well in bogs, if you have access to those bulbs. Hostas will do well and since you have them freely available, sound like a good choice. You can always add other plants as you find them. People often divide plants in Spring and Fall, so keep checking.

 

[AlyssaFish]

My marsh marigold grew like a beast. Aquatic forget-me-nots do well, too. Whether or not you have the same luck with them may have more to do with climate and water parameters, however.

In any case, here's the rule I've experienced with pond plants: The first year, they grow slowly and don't look that impressive. The second year, they grow fast, hard, and look fantastic.

My advice is to relax. Your plants should grow and spread, and you shouldn't need to supplement with more plants if you don't want to.

Cute little fountain, by the way! And good luck with your lemon bacopa! I've always wanted to grow that, but it just doesn't seem to like the water conditions here. Such a pretty plant when it is growing well!