Limited Sunlight Pond

[bryan5437]

Greetings Everyone,
I am working to determine the feasibliity of a pond on the side of my home. The dimensions of this location are approximately 12'x5' and my plan was to use a bog for filtration. I have no concern over the construction of the pond, but am worried my spot has insufficient lighting for plants. Using SunCalc I have determined that at most I might have a few hours of sun in the mornings during my summer months. During the winter I would likely not get any direct sunlight due to my adjacent patio cover and home wall.

I have read though a few online articles discussing shade tolerant plants: Illuminate Your Pond with Shade-Loving Plants, Ponds in shady gardens, Best Pond Plants for Shady Areas. The assertion in these articles is that you can have success if you make plant selections which do not require as much direct sun. Has anyone used references like these to select shade tolerant plants for ponds without direct sunlight? If so please let me know if you were successful or not.

 

[j.w]

@bryan5437
There are some shade plants that would love it around your pond. Carex type plants like some shade and they can be planted w/their roots in the water. I have the Carex in some shade and it does fine.Not sure about any underwater plants tho. Water Hawthorne can take some shade. I have Parrot's Feather and it does ok in part sun but better in full sun.

 

[bryan5437]

j.w. Thanks for your experience. I have no strong preference between emersed and submerged plants as long as I can find suitable plants for all areas of the pond. Water Hawthorn could be a good substitude for plant coverage outside of the bog.

 

[sissy]

welcome and also depends where you live .As little sunlight will freeze the pond deeper .You can buy shade plants as that is not a big deall .Some shade plants like wet roots that grow on land like shade and wet roots .Water lettuce likes shade ..Not sure how deep your pond will be or what kind of filtration or aeration you will need .

 

[bryan5437]

I live in Texas and my Plant Hardiness zone is 9A so I am not too worried about freezeing my pond water. The pond design is in work, but I am expecting the depth to be between 1 and 3 ft. In order for my bog to work I need to find shade tolerant plants which will still grow enough to export nutrients from the water.

 

[sissy]

great thing about the shade is that it will keep the water cooler and that helps keep algae from growing also .I have the reverse problem to much sun ,it heats up the water lets algae grow and and fish have to hide under the bridge for shade .You can grow caladium in your bog as it comes in pretty colors now ,black elephant ears ,and even hostas .I grow them at the back of the house that only gets morning sun because the forest behind me has gotten lots taller since 2004

 

[j.w]

j.w. Thanks for your experience. I have no strong preference between emersed and submerged plants as long as I can find suitable plants for all areas of the pond. Water Hawthorn could be a good substitude for plant coverage outside of the bog.

Water Hawthorne goes in the pond water like a water lily only it blooms in the cooler seasons but not sure it can take your heat in Texas if it stays too warm all year long. I looked it up and says zone 6 to 10 so guess it does grow there.

Water Hawthorne:

 

[Stephen Noble]

Welcome Brian!
Your question seems to ask about shade tolerant plants for your bog. Many plants will do fine in shade but the downside is they won't flower until very late in the season or not at all. Look at those links you provided and see which low-light plants you like and go with them. One of my ponds is very low-light. It grows two varieties of lilies (that don't bloom until June), Louisiana Iris (grows very slowly in the dim light) and Umbrella Palms which grow quite well. Not in the pond and receiving almost no sunlight are red Begonia.