How to Build a Garden Pond

A garden pond, also referred to as a backyard pond, is a water body constructed in the garden or backyard, either for beautifying the surroundings and/or to provide a habitat for the wildlife. Water gardening, i.e. garden pond building, is gaining vast popularity around the world. Though the task may look difficult, it becomes quite easy once you understand the basics. Just following some simple instructions can help you with this task and add to the grace of your surroundings.

Instructions to Build a Garden Pond
The foremost thing to do when building a garden pond is to choose a spot after analyzing the surroundings. You need to take into consideration various factors, such as soil conditions and the rock bed. It's important that the pond receive proper amount of sunlight throughout the day. Once you find an ideal spot to construct your garden pond, you can demarcate the area and start digging. While digging make sure you dig up two different levels, the shallow part will be used for marginal plants, while the deeper part will be used for submerged plants and fish, if any. A depth of 3 to 5 feet is ideal for a small garden pond. Use a hard tub liner to cover the base of the pond, to avoid water leakage.

Garden Pond Liner
The use of a flexible pond liner gives you an added advantage of overlapping some area outside the pond. If the ground is rough, you can use a layer of sand at the bottom of the pond before covering it with the liner. Using sand also ensures that your pond liner is free from any sort of damage. Flatten the liner as much as possible, ensuring that all the curves and corners are neatly covered, for leakage prevention. Use flat landscaping rocks to secure the outer edges of the pond. You need to put some weight on the pond liners to keep them submerged at the bed of the pond till all the air under the liner is released. Though water plants are ideal for this purpose, you can also use heavy stones for it.

Installing a Garden Pond Pump
A garden pond pump is an important equipment which you would require to facilitate water supply to your pond. You will have to attach the pump in such a way that it is not visible. An ideal way to do this is to hide it in the space among the water plants. You can also use some weed fabric at the bed of the pond or a washed stone to keep the water outlet in its place. The pump hose should be laid along the bed of the garden pond. Use larger stones around the hose to hide it.

Water Plants for Your Garden Pond
When choosing water plants for your pond, you need to take into consideration the climate of the place. For instance, using ferns in an area with a dry climate doesn't make any sense. Place these submerged plants on the pond liner at the bed of the pond. You can keep the plants on stones or vertical risers in order to place them at the correct depth. Some commonly used water plants are water lilies and marsh marigolds.

After you have finished building your garden pond, turn the pump on and fill it with water. By doing this, you can check whether you have missed out on something, or whether you need to make some last minute alterations. A garden pond is perhaps the simplest way to maintain a beautiful garden that compliments your house.