Pond 90% done

[FountainMan]

Spent last week buying parts and getting pebbles for the pond. So far so good.

Still need a few bags of pebbles to cover some piping. I decided this year to go with liner/rock bottom. The pebble bed allows plants to grow freely. Also looks nice too. I also put some larger rocks in and around the pond. For the fountain in the main pond I bought an older Tetra pond kit which included 5 patterns. The transition from the main pond to side pond used to be a waterfall. I dug under the liner and made this just a throughway from one pond to another so it's like one bigger pond.

Was wanting to get photos yesterday but we were blessed with a storm system and it rained the whole evening. I installed the fountain right before the storm hit yesterday.

Mostly finished pond. I turned the fountain off to show the pond bottom.

Side lagoon. Formal portion of water feature. This year instead of doing a bog and getting the pond messy I did the edges with rock.

Here's a side shot of the lagoon facing the main pond in the background.

The fountain is turned on. This helps aerate the water for the fish which in the photo were hiding. I'm also on the verge of buying a color changing light for the fountain.

Side shot of pond. Still wanting to buy some sensitive plants. Might buy these next weekend.

Here is the stream running into the pond. My dad bought a bunch of pitcher plants last week. Right now they're in their planters until we get some peet moss in here.

Another Shot of the stream from overhead. The black object in the middle is a solar fountain I bough for a whiskey barrol water garden. Figured the stream would be a great spot for it. The fountain is off due to the shadows over the solar panels but for the morning hours the fountain runs pretty well.

This is the waterfall into the stream from the header pool. Used some flagstone and rocks to form the falls.

This is the header pool. It's small but attracts birds. We have a little cardinal that uses it frequently. The birds love the little fountain jet in the center. I know I have a thing for fountains.

This is the pump pit. The pump that powers the waterfall sits in here. The lid did not belong to the planter the pump sits in but it fit the top as a debris screen.

Another couple of shots of the pond. I'm still trying to adjust the fountain so if it looks like the lilies are fighting turbulence they are. But not for long.

Just another photo.

 

[dieselplower]

Looks nice. Do you have fish in your future?

 

[Big Lou]

Really looks good.

 

[j.w]

Looking good and your lily pads are huge compared to mine!

 

[FountainMan]

I do have fish. The small 10¢ goldfish from Petsmart. They also like to hide. Usually after 6 months they get bigger and friendlier. They hang out under the water lily.

As far as the lilies I think species tells the size of the lily pads. Mine are the Nimphea Attraction. According to my books the pads on N. Attraction can grow up to 12" diameter. Stay tuned in 4 days my lilies are pushing up flowers. When they bloom I'll get pictures.

 

[j.w]

Flowers already..................you lucky pup you!

 

[FountainMan]

The pickerelweed and water lilies were sold in those kits they occasionally have at Lowes or home depot. The plants that come in those straw cacoons. The lilies and pickerelweed are about 5 years old now. All looks nice. Maybe some year I'll get sensitive plants to bloom.

 

[addy1]

Very nice! Everything is looking great

 

[Sunshine]

Love it. The plants all look good.

 

[FountainMan]

Here's a shot of the solar fountain running.

 

[FountainMan]

I altered the solar fountain in the stream to be less obstructive. The pump was hot glued under the float which contains the solar panels. Found some small phone cable in a box in my closet. I soldered the wire in from the solar panel module to the pump. I used hot glue to waterproof the connections. Then I placed the pump about an inch beneath the pebbles also hiding the cord. So all that protrudes above the gravel is the nozzle. The cord comes out under the cobble stones under the waterfall then connects to the solar panels which are now placed in a sunnier location. Occasionally I'll use a small thin piece of flagstone to partially cover the panels controlling the fountain's height. When the sun is out the spray creates nice shadows among the gravel on the stream bottom.

I took photos with the with the fountain off to show the fountain installation. Tomorrow I'll try and get another shot of it running.

 

[FountainMan]

Got a chance to capture the fountain running today.the mist helps the pitcher plants. Like the patterns this creates amongst the stones.

 

[addy1]

Very nice, love how it looks

 

[j.w]

Yep looks cool

 

[sissy]

and bonus free electric