Pond area 4 years on

Thanks Martin,  although I did the general landscaping and put all the plants/trees/shrubs/grasses in around the pond and rockery area we had the professionals construct the actual pond  -   it was one of the show gardens at an RHS Show (Tatton Park) in 2011 which we purchased after the event and they resconstructed it in our garden adding the bog pond and reed bed.  It took three months in total over one of the coldest winters on record !   The day they finished (Feb 3rd 2012)  there was thick fog that day but we all celebrated in the afternoon with me mixing cocktails for the workers  lol     They worked so hard that I made them a hot dinner (lunchtime)  every single day !

Here's a few pics to give you an idea of what went into the construction.  

the grassed area selected for the pond ..........

digging out the soil, forming the shape  ..........

the work that went into this pond was incredible, such a good construction with breeze blocks support, sand, fleece, thick rubber liner and sea pebble layers

mayhem  !    building materials:      ............

gravel, sea pebbles, rocks ............

minus 10 degrees  and  snowing   !

Finish !!! ................

following new turf and first planting session   ................

Having a pond, no matter large or small will really add to the garden, entice the wildlife and you will have some fabulous birds an other animals visiting;  we have never regretted the water feature as we've seen some amazing birds in the garden that we could never have dreamed of and added such a lovely feature to look at too.      Good luck with your pond Martin, as the saying goes ...........build it and they will come   :)      At the far end of the garden I have a simple wooden barrel filled with water and that attracts the birds also ...........and a frog  !!     We have also created two stumpery log piles which also prove popular with the birds and acts as a photographic prop too.

Great photos Hazy! It looked like a major project but at least you can reap the benefits :) The pond looks lovely and I can imagine the wildlife will be loving it too :)

Looks even more stunning now that all the plants and shrubs have matured. You've done a terrific planting job. Gorgeous colours from the Acers and other shrubs.

thanks Jason and Tony, just wish it kept that manicured  lol     Left the bog garden a bit wilder for the insects and plan to plant some more Erysimum next season as it was the most popular flower in the garden attracting hoverflys, bees and ladybirds.   Acers have mostly shed their leaves now so its looking a bit bare :(      Planted some teasel seeds this year so next season they should do ok, fingers crossed.   

Evening Martin,  great to see the frog enjoying the water :)  I'm sure it will love your new pond and make itself quite at home there.    Please feel free to add updates to this thread if you wish, its lovely to hear how your pond creation is coming along.   As you say, the short daylight hours don't help at this time of year so good luck with finishing your project and looking forward to your next update.    

Your pond and garden are looking fantastic Hazy. All the hard work and constant maintenance has paid off for both you and all of the wildlife you manage to attract. (Mrs A would have strangled me if I had left the place looking like a building site during my pond build).!! In all fairness though, my project wasn't nearly on the same scale as yours though. :-)  

Evening Paul, thanks so much;   it doesn't quite look as tidy anymore as that last photo portrays as even the new turf has lost that new look and weeds creep in !   I couldn't begin to tell you how messy this project was being undertaken from 17th October 2011 through to 3rd February 2012 and during one of the severest winters we ever had when I think we experienced minus 17 degrees lol    we had it all, snow, ice, fog, rain and the digger churned up the area around the pond so had no alternative but to replace the turf once all was finished !   When I think back, I'm not sure how we managed four months of thick mud, concrete mixer, grit, top soil and other materials being constantly delivered as the pond required more stones, rocks, gravel, liner, etc.,   Originally, I understood this project would take around 6 weeks so thought "not too bad, I will give them hot dinners every day being so bitterly cold outside"  which then went on for 4 months !! (with 2 x fortnight breaks off between start and finish)  To be fair, the guys were really pleasant, good workers albeit very short days during winter, and they created such a stunning water feature going to great lengths to ensure the build was not only good quality but visibly right.   We needed so much more extra materials than we anticipated but with pre-agreement on price, only had to pay for the topsoil delivery which was needed to build up the rockery area surrounding the waterfall;  9 tons of stones came from the show garden and another 10 tons had to be ordered from Yorkshire to complete the job !   I have to say, although it took what seemed like forever to complete and the daily sight of mucky conditions around garden greeting us every day, the guys did a fantastic job adding significant value not only to the garden but as part of the overall property value.   Although their style was very casual, their work was top notch and they certainly knew how best to recreate this feature in our garden to which we will always be grateful to them.   I would never have believed the difference it made to encouraging more wildlife, especially birds and would always recommend some sort of water feature in a garden no matter large or small although will small babies or toddlers, I would maybe postpone it till they were older.   Ponds are a dangerous place and accidents can happen in seconds.    

Hi Hazy, you've planted teasels?? Ah they're brilliant for the pollinating insects but they will self seed and spread like wild fire :)

Was thinking other day, your garden will suit gunneras! But think they're pretty avaisive too........

Evening Jason,  yes, I have them in a large deep stone planter at the moment so I can add just two or three next year and give some to my Aunt who has just built her own small pond at the age of 80 years young !   I had heard about them taking over a garden so will keep my eye on them once planted properly !   Would be nice to have more than one or two Goldfinches in the garden :)    plus more flying  insects !   Gunneras are too large, even for our garden and pond lol   I've seen them on our travels by the River Dove and they would hide everything else although they are lovely in the right situation  lol    If you haven't got Erysimums yet then I really recommend them for the bees, hoverflys, etc,