This the the pond we have in our back yard. It is the one I have written about before. This is the final edition I hope. I have moved the rocks and re-lined the pond itself four times.To the left, in the water, is the rock we call Monument Rock. It is an old broken granite tombstone about 18 inches high. It provides great shade for the fish and is a terrific conversation piece. You can still read the first name and date on it still.
The waterfall comes in just out of the picture to the left. It is powered by a 1200 gallon/hour submersible pump. The white rock in the middle took two of us to put it in the pond. I have it sitting on two flat rocks so it does not rest directly on the bottom liner. It also allows the fish to swim and hide underneath it.
The rocks surrounding the pond for the most part were just picked up in the fields around our town. Most, I have had for over twenty years. When we moved to this house, we moved the rocks with us. I collected them in a little Honda Civic and worked too hard to leave them behind. We also have friends bring rocks back from trips for us. We have rocks from Australia, Mauritius, twelve European countries, the Caribbean, all across Canada, Mexico and the U.S.
The owl is there to protect the fish. Even though we live in an urban area, I went out one morning and a Great Blue Heron was having breakfast on my fish. He must have been there awhile because he got all but three of them. We heard that if you put a predatory bird replica out, it would keep them away. So far, so good.
We know the pond is healthy because the fish actually breed in it. We have different oxygenating plants and lily pads in the water. It is an attractant for birds of all different species. In the winter, I empty the pond and the fish go into the basement in a rubber-maid container with a bubbler. In the spring, back into the pond. And what do we feed them you ask? Nothing. They fend for themselves and help keep the mosquito population down
The flowers around the pond? That is my Mrs. Moose's department.
8 comments:
What a gorgeous sight. I love all of it especially the lily pads and the tombstone.
What a beautiful pond ... but you know there is probably never a final edition. I wish I could have brought mine down here with me as well. Or at least my wonderful green frogs. The very first thing the new owner did was destroy the floating frog habitat. In retrospect, I'm surprised she didn't just unhinge her jaw and swallow the frogs whole like a constrictor.
Congrats to Mrs. Moose on the plants - beautiful!
A heron can clean out a small pond in a very short time. Look for something called the "Pond Guardian" if the owl fails. This was a concept I was working on when this version hit the market for far less $ than I could have completed it for. It works and gives you lots of mischief opps and laughs at the same time.
Babzy: Thank you. Most people think it is bizarre that we have tombstones in our pond. The waterfall is almost totally made of old tombstones.
Lin: Thanks. I hope this is the final edition. I keep changing the stream and waterfall to get it just right. Mrs. Moose says , leave it alone.
I like your pond, very much. Any trouble with raccoons getting those fish? Here, people have to put wire over the top to keep them out.
Bonita: I don't think I've even heard of a raccoon in this area of Alberta, which is strange when I think about it. We have skunks etc., but not raccoons that I know of.
Last night when my husband and I were driving home from the library we noticed a raccoon eating remnants of a croissant right outside Starbucks, on a busy street in the north end of Tacoma. Where in the world does it hide during the day! We surely have taken away it's natural habitat.
Bonita: It is amazing where these animals can find a place when they are living so close to humans. When my daughter was in Ottawa, she lived in a third floor flat and a raccoon lived at her front door for a while.
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