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My New Concrete Pond Project - Help - Advice needed

Hey what is this about floating islands and what does water mint look like?

Thanks,

Steve
floating islands are a polystyrene planting thing. Covered in fabric, they have a hole in the middle like a plant pot for filling with soil and plants. Water mint has small leaves with blue/ purple flowers. Its rampant. But great for water quality.
 
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Above is the most common floating plant Island, being as it floats they are best if they are anchored to stop them moving around. (They could float under the water return and get sunk)
 

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Thanks Martin, I was looking at something similar to these at the weekend. They were in Wirral Waterworld but they weren't cheap!

On Sunday I emptied the pond and cleaned it out from top to bottom. I could not believe the amount of mud and muck that had built up, it has leaked from the pots no wonder they were all half empty. I saved half the water in huge containers and after I had scrubbed the walls down I filled it back up with fresh water and all the water I had saved. I have bought some planting baskets which I am going to fix to the sides and plant with marginals. Then I just need one big lily for the centre. I will take some photographs when I'm done. The lawn looks a right mess at the moment.

Anyone know which one is the best for planting deep?

Cheers,

Steve.
 
nymphaea alba is great at depth
Tuberosa is my favourite though
Also try aponogeton distachyos- really stunning in spring.
 
I can't help but wonder................
A lily may look nice, but as it has to be planted deep, does that not defeat the object of keeping the pool clean and the whole idea of floating / suspended baskets?
 
Then I just need one big lily for the centre.

Anyone know which one is the best for planting deep?
Cheers,

Steve.
I really like Lily's, like Darren said N. Alba is a good one for depths up to nearly 2m. I havnt had a lot of experience with varieties tbh but have a search on websites such as puddleplants.co.uk for information on varieties suitability.
Cheerio
Ady
 
Well after a thorough clean out of the pond and a cycled rotation in cleaning all the pump equipment and filters the pond is all set for the summer.:) I went on eBay and put 'Marginal Plants' into the search category and bought about £30.00 worth of plants which arrived the next day from Fishybiz96. Very good quality and saved a fortune had I bought them from my local place. They were not potted though so there was a few hours work involved. List of plants bought with pictures are below.

Mares Tail

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Dwarf Bulrush

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Tillea Recurva

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Bushy Mini Horsetail

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Penny Wort

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Dwarf Yellow iris

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Myosotis Palustris

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For now I have planted them all in different size pots and put them on a large plastic tray which is sat on two upturned milk crates. See pictures below.

I have just taken a load of photos of the plants and the fish coming up for feeding. Here they are.

Main shot of pond

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Closer views

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The Power Centre

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The Water Blade in action

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The milk crates and trays The two plastic trays you can see are balanced on top of a milk crate to give you an idea of what it looks like. All the plants at the moment are a few inches under the water which is up to 12 degrees today!

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Photos of the fish

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I am going to sell the three large Koi Carp either on here or on eBay so look at the pictures and if anyone is interested, collection only I'm afraid, please let me know. There is a blue grey coloured one and the other two are orange and white, all are around 12 inches long from nose to tail.

I know the fish look like they are swimming on a brick wall, its the reflection and my poor photography:D

The lily and the Mares Tail plants will have to sit deeper but I know the Koi Carp will dig about and make a mess that is why I am selling them. Once the Carp have been sold I will re-arrange the plants.

More photos in a week or two when plants are more developed.

Cheers,

Steve
 
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Thanks Tim, you ain't going to be in a first floor floor flat all your life mate, your time will come.

One thing I forgot to mention. The floating island you can see in picture 2 and 3 of the pond pictures above, here is a little tip to anyone thinking of buying them. If you follow the instructions to the letter, they either tip up or sink. They just can't support the weight of soil, plants and gravel. So I had to line the base inside with some more chunks of polystyrene to give it more ballast. Its a pity because then there is less room for soil for the plant. Bit of a catch 22 situation.

Cheers,

Steve
 
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