I'm hooked!

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Work continues on my first pond - slow but enjoying every minute of it....well except when a boulder rolled off shelf into pond- but heck...looks good right where it landed. Have a couple fish and plants in while I continue the build. Just added a couple fish Tuesday and last. Igbo was the first they were out swimming around so tried feeding them - and they swarmed up and gobbled their food. I was like a little kid - sitting on the edge - memorized at my little guys/gals! Yea I am so screwed-have a feeling this pond will not be the last! So I'm curious - several on here provide so much insight and support- how did you get started in water gardens, how long you been doing it, best water garden memory, best advice for newbie! Thanks.....and yep....I am so in trouble!!!
 
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Welcome from a fellow Buckeye :)

When we bought our house, there was an existing small pond. We grew to love it and built a bigger pond.
 
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We stumbled on the concept of a pondless waterfall when we were having a patio installed - the internet provides lots of great inspiration! We installed that first water feature and... the rest is history. I told my husband I would love to have some fish - so we got a small patio pond. We then started going on pond tours in the area and started dreaming about a pond of our own - and soon it was a reality, thanks to my boys and their muscles and my husband and his generous nature. He wants to make me happy - my pond makes me VERY happy!

The whole pond build is filled with great memories - mostly times when I wasn't sure if any of us would ever speak to each other again! haha! It can be stressful as you work your way through the unexpected things that come up along the way. But we persisted and really gained a lot of respect for one as "co-workers". We learned our strengths and weaknesses and learned we had to be willing to discuss without arguing. Plus the end result was so rewarding - my youngest son was "project manager" and he really gained a lot of confidence through the process. Plus he learned a lot about budgeting and cost projecting and dealing with suppliers and so on. It's hard to believe, but that was six summers ago. We've loved every minute!

Best advice - visit other ponds to see what you like. All ponds are lovely, but some will really speak to your soul. And talk to other pond owners - they will tell you what THEY wish they had known!
 
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What an amazing life experience for you family! Beautiful memories for all!
 
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It almost feels random for me. I always wanted an aquarium, but can't easily have one for various reason (cats and space, mostly). I always loved flowing water--I like to hike to waterfalls, for example. So I kept a fountain for about 10 years, but I kept having to fill it, as in three+ times a day, due to wind and it became something that wasn't worth the hassle. So I got the idea for a fountain in the ground, which evolved in my mind into a waterfall, and after a read a few books, I determined that it would be best to have a "receptacle" for this water. I wasn't originally planning on having fish. But as I started digging, I kept reading and seeking out new information, which led me to conclude that I should hedge my bets and make it big enough to accommodate fish. I have very heavy clay hear, and mosquitos started breeding in the hole I was digging, so then fish came to seem essential. Then I also realized this could be my way to finally have a sort of aquarium, too.

One thing led to another as I kept digging and building and reading (and reading some more), and I ended up with a waterfall -> stream -> pond, with a another waterfall going directly into the pond, which is about 12'x16'x20 inches or so, maybe bigger, and deeper in spots. This totally transformed my yard (the waterfall/stream part extends a further 15-20 feet from the pond), so I had to alter the landscaping to suit the pond. That's what I've been doing this year (I started building my water feature almost exactly one year ago), as well as adding a third waterfall to accommodate additional filtration. Fish multiply.

I would say it's more work than I anticipated, but I kept expanding my project's scope, so that's kind of moving the goal posts. Now, I couldn't imagine not having fish and the sound of streams and waterfalls in my yard. My neighbors all love it, too, because I live in a city, and though our neighborhood is quiet, there is always ambient noise, which the waterfalls and stream help to mask. I am so glad I got into this hobby. The primary two drawbacks are cost--this has been a very expensive proposition, though the costs will go down dramatically now that all the building is about done--and it makes travelling a bit more difficult. Ponds demand attention. Creating a real ecosystem is both awesome but also a responsibility. I am not one of the experts, but I love having my pond.
 

addy1

water gardener / gold fish and shubunkins
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My hubby bought me a tractor with a bucket and back hoe, for our first anniversary, and told me to build a pond and stream! So I did, but now we have 10 ponds and one loooooong stream!
 
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I had two turtles, raised them from pups in a 30 gallon aquarium (yeah, I know, bad, but they survived and grew to 5") before I felt they really needed more room. I had a thought; hmm, for the summer, how about I put them in a kiddie pool on the driveway? Surely more room than what they had and it would give me time to figure out a 'larger' solution in the winter.

Then I went and visited my brother...he had a pond...nothing special--no fish, no animals, just water and a couple plants. I got the idea I liked it anyhow...and there was always the urge that the turtles needed more room...

...by the time summer was over, August to be exact, I had my pond. My first. Now, really hard to imagine NOT having one. I tend to 'push' the pond/idyllic scenario every time I get a chance. If you have a pond, I'll talk to you for a looooong time. If you're thinking of building one, I'll talk even longer and give this forum free air time. And if you have one and want help fixing/making it better, my weekend's are free! (provided you live in the Oakland county area code!) For me, it's a place of nature and harmony, of textures, flora, fauna, musical water sounds--the whole gamut. I got frogs and fish, turtles and lilies, waterfalls and all my orchids hanging or shelved. Plus, NO mosquitoes to foul the moment!

And all because I thought the turtles should have a larger place...


So, when do I begin the last 11 steps of the program? And which number means I enlarge the pond????
heh


Michael
 
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And all because I thought the turtles should have a larger place...

If you're familiar with Aquascape (big pond building/equipment suppler in the suburban Chicago area), the whole company was started because of the owners love for turtles - he built his first pond as a kid for his turtles.
 
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We were trying to figure out how to landscape this large area between staircases, and hubby suggested a pond!
The pond was my husband's idea... the 2 renovations to make it larger, and larger were both mine!:LOL:
 
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I've still got some time before this is an immediate worry, but my wife and I have discussed places to retire. Now that we've got the pond, we might not leave, except I would be able to build a new and bigger and better one where we do retire to. If I could physically handle it, that is. Either way, the pond has become a variable in thinking about things like retirement, which would have been inconceivable to two-years-ago me.
 

sissy

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reason I retired to VA much cheaper than NJ .11 thousand taxes on an acre there 3+ acres here and a thousand dollars .House was 89 thousand dollars and is 2440 sq. ft. .Plus safer and i get my change of seasons and can sit out and enjoy the view .But wish I had built a pondless feature less work and upkeep
 

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