Posted on: September 17, 2007

Pondering an H2Oasis

Creating a garden pond in your backyard isn't as daunting as it sounds. Big or small, a pond of your own is a relaxing and rewarding way to indulge

By Jeff Schnaufer
CTW Features

When it comes to creating a pond or water garden for your home, the question isn't how deep you want it, it's how deep you do your research.

"You gotta do your legwork," says Bob Malik, president of the Illiana Garden Pond Society. "Research how deep, what do you do for plants, what do you do for fish, what do you do to keep the water from turning green and what makes it maintenance free."

Malik, who lives in Lowell, Ind., and has seven ponds, learned through experience. His first pond was pre-fabricated – one that dropped right into a hole he dug – and purchased for $35 from an aquatic store.

"The first one is never big enough," Malik says. "It doesn't fulfill your wishes. Ninety-nine percent of the time, that's the most common mistake."

A true pond, experts say, is one that you design yourself and is made of rubber lining. Size is limited to your imagination and budget, which also determines what you put inside and out. Experts suggest exploring your options through research, whether it be the Internet, magazines, joining a local pond club or pond-hopping.

"Go on a pond tour," says Mike Paddy, president of the Michigan Koi & Pond Clubs Southeast Chapter. "We use those to show people different kinds of ponds they can consider. It's a good learning experience."

One of the first things to learn is that you can sink a lot of money into ponds.

"The initial cost is the most expensive," says Paddy. "My first pond that I put in was about $30,000 dollars for a 5,500-gallon pond."

Nor is it cheap to remodel or expand a pond. Paddy is transforming that first pond into a 13,000-gallon aquatic oasis with a 60-foot stream. He figures it will cost him another $30,000.

Malik built the largest of his seven ponds – at 8,500 gallons – by himself for about $3,000. "If I had someone else build it," he says, "it would have cost probably $15,000 to $17,000."

"If you do it yourself, it can take a month or more," he adds. "If you pay somebody, they can do it in two days."

But be careful whom you choose to build your pond. Paddy says a number of potential pond owners in Michigan went to inexperienced landscapers – and paid the price.

"You hear a lot of horror stories," Paddy says. "What ends up happening is they don't get an adequate filter. Or they put rocks in the bottom to eliminate the folds in the liner, which when the fish waste goes in, it hides there in the rocks and you can't get that stuff out. Landscapers don't know that. Their bread and butter is landscaping."

While a realistic budget and a reputable builder are important, so is location. Malik suggests picking a spot on your property that is easily seen by you (yet not by others) and where you spend most of your leisure time. Paddy adds that it should be a place where you "can sit in your house with the windows open and be able to hear the water."

As far as choosing features, waterfalls (which should be facing you) are not only beautiful, but they can double as bio filters. The moving water also discourages mosquitoes, whose larvae are also eaten by the fish you may stock in your pond.

When selecting fish, you have some financial flexibility. A first-time pond owner, Paddy says, should consider inexpensive, tiny goldfish from a pet store. A little more colorful goldfish to consider are Comet and Shubunkin. You might even find Japanese Koi fish for around $7 each. That's a bargain, considering top breed Koi can run into the thousands and, five years ago, one even sold for over $1.2 million.

"Koi starts to get expensive," Paddy says. "The whole business of breeding Koi is like breeding dogs or cats."

Be aware that it's not only the cost of fish that can grow, but the fish themselves.

"Fish will grow according to their environment," Malik says. "If you buy a fish four or five inches and put it in a large pond, it will grow big time. If you put it in a small pond, it will stay pretty close to the same size. Some fish in my pond that were four inches are now 20 inches."

Another surprise is that pond fish can survive the winters, even in Northern states. "If your pond is a minimum of 18-inches deep, you can keep your fish in the winter under the ice," says Malik. "What you've got to remember is you must have a hole in the ice to let gases escape. I've got 10-year-old fish in my pond that I've never brought in the house."

While fish enhance the visual beauty of ponds, other wildlife can transform your pond into an aquatic opera a well. The frogs inhabiting one of Malik's ponds croak out nocturnal noises, he says, that "gives you a tranquil feeling."

Flora for your pond should be selected not only for fragrance or beauty, but for practicality.

"One of the hazards of a pond is green water/string algae," says Malik. "Try to keep half to two thirds of your pond covered with water lilies so that light does not encourage that algae to grow."

While there are many things to consider when deciding to create your own H2Oasis, experts and owners alike - called "ponders" - say that the reward is well worth the effort.

Perhaps Malik sums it up best: "It looks good, it's very relaxing and if you have a stressful life, this is the way to go."

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