Below is an account of how we constructed our pond and some of the wildlife it brings to our garden.
Also see the page below for more on -
Dragonflies And Damselflies

In Spring of '97 we made plans for putting in a garden pond. We had the perfect corner which had a slight slope to it which would lend itself to a small water fall and also had enough sun during the day to grow plants such as lillies.
We started off by buying a pre-formed shell for the main pond and started to dig the area that would hold it. We also bought large rocks from a local stone supply and positioned those in front of the pond as well as behind it, to give support to the sloping ground. These would give plenty of places for toads and lizards to hide in and provided a nice wall for plants to be tucked into, as well as a sitting area.

Two smaller top ponds were also dug which would have a liner underneath, flowing into the main bottom pond. The size of the pond is 61/2 x 71/2 feet and 18" deep. It is not deep enough for Koi, which need a minimum of 2 feet in depth, but certainly for Goldfish which I wanted several of eventually.

With the excavation done, pond shell and liners in, and the third row of the stone wall completed, we backfilled with good dirt and placed a mesh liner behind the stone wall to help prevent dirt from washing out from between the rocks.

After the pond was filled with water we put in a 1600 gal per hour pump strong enough to pump the water up to the top and back down the falls. A biological/mechanical filter was added at the top and lillies and other pond plants put in the pond to improve water quality by increasing oxygen.

Then, all we had to do was wait and just let nature take its course. The fresh water was beautiful and clear for about 4 days and then came the algae, which is a natural process. It turned a dark brown/green and looked terrible, the bottom completely invisible, but we waited. Then about 3 weeks later the water suddenly started to clear, literally with in a few days. Natural bacteria had built up inside the filter cartridges and within a day or two the pond was crystle clear! I put some goldfish in there as well as some little minnows which keep the surface of the water clear of anything.

Finaly, shrubs and perrenials were planted around the outside. I planted a groundcover around the edge to help hide the plastic pond mould. Native and drought tolerant plants were picked for year round color.

Almost 6 years later the pond is doing great and the shrubs around it have matured. The Goldfish take food out of my hand, toads nest and overwinter in the rock crevices, American Fence Lizards bask on the hot sunlit rocks, birds bathe in the water and beautiful Dragonfiles come each year to lay their eggs in the pond. It is a complete ecosystem and theres always something interesting going on there if time is taken to look!

Ten years later the light conditions around the pond changed a little more, becomming more shady, so new plants including ferns & columbines were planted. The two top ponds were turned into more of a stream by filling in the ponds with river stones. This enables the birds and wildlife to enter a lot easier and now they love bathing in the shallower water!

Adding a pond is one of the nicest improvements added to our yard. The sound alone is so peaceful and attracts birds that may otherwise fly by. I keep it running all year without a problem as our winters here, although they get cold, only remain extreme for a few days and the fish and plants overwinter without any problems.