A Homemade Pond

by Den (CT)

I wanted to make my backyard something really special, so I decided to add a pond to create a feature in my garden. Instead of having someone else put it in though, I decided to create a homemade pond.

1. The first thing I did was to take some wooden stakes and string and make an outline of where I wanted my pond. This helped me to visualize how it would really look in contrast to the rest of my yard, and it made it easy to dig out the right space. I measured my yard to find the best space and also looked at the space from many angles to see where the pond would create the best effect.
2. It probably would have been quicker to go to a local tool rental shop and rent a tiny tractor with a backhoe attachment to do the job, but my budget didn’t extend that far. So I used a trusty shovel and pick and recruited some family to help dig.
3. Once the hole was dug in the size I wanted, I spread a couple inches of sand on the bottom of the hole and dropped in the pre-formed pond liner I chose. These are sturdier than pliable liners and are less likely to be punctured.
4. I put some sturdy rocks all around the top edges of the liner to make the pond look as though it had a natural rock rim and also held the liner in place nicely. I also found some lovely, smooth river rocks to place in the bottom of the pond to make the black liner less noticeable.
5. Then I filled the liner around ¾ full with water. I figured I’d need a way to keep the water aerated, so I found a simple pump that would keep water moving, but I didn’t worry about getting a filter. The pump had an option for a fountain in the box or it had a hose attachment that could be run under the larger rocks I’d used around the edges of the pond.
6. I chose to run the hose beneath the rocks. I got two more large rocks and placed them on top of the edging rocks to form a little waterfall and ran the hose between them all. The water comes out of the center of the rocks and cascades down the sides beautifully into the pond.
7. Once this step was finished, I chose some aquatic plants and some goldfish to go in my homemade pond. I made sure to create a good balance so that everything in my pond has room to grow, but there is enough life in the pond to discourage a lot of algae growth.
8. The kindly assistant at the store where I bought the fish said that if I don’t put any fish food into the pond at all, the fish will thrive on eating algae and insects and the bottom of the tank won’t get so dirty. I also added a couple of water snails to help keep the algae to a minimum.
9. Since I built my pond, I’ve noticed a few tiny tadpoles swimming around and at night I can hear frogs croaking, so I guess my pond is a healthy little habitat!
10. A homemade pond can look just as good as one that is professionally made. You can make it any shape that you want, fill it with whatever strikes your fancy and best of all save a lot of money. My pond was very easy to build, and only takes a little maintenance every week to keep it running smoothly and looking great!