Water can be a great way to add more beauty to your garden. Adding a pond can be an easy way to add something special to your garden for those inexperienced gardeners. For those who revel in gardening – cultivating plants from seed to full growth. Indeed, certain water features are a great way to add something a little more challenging to look after.
No matter what stage of gardening you find yourself at, there will be a water feature that suits your needs.
3 Water Features That Add Charm to Your Backyard
Water provides beauty to look at and so much more. Read on to find out how these three additions to the backyard provide benefits.
1 – Pond (with and without fish)
A pond is a simple way to add a water feature to your garden. They are very popular and can be as easy or as hard to install as you’d like. They can be small and easy to manage or large and more complicated, giving you as a gardener a bigger challenge.
For less experienced gardeners, starting with a fishless pond might be the best way forward. But for those looking for a bit more work, adding fish into your pond will make you a more active gardener.
Ponds are a great water feature for a gardener, as they can be home to both plant life and wildlife. They can draw the eye and make your garden stand out.
However, ponds do require a bit of work. When you have a pond, you need to clean your pond regularly. Ponds will gather dirt and debris over time. Leaves, which can easily fall into a pond, need to be cleared out regularly. Leaves can release toxic gas when they decay, disrupting the balance of your pond.
In winter, you need to watch out for ice – especially if you have wildlife in your pond. The best way to prevent freezing is to float a ball or de-icer in the pond. Alternatively, installing a heater can prevent this.
2 – Aquaponics
An aquaponic garden is an excellent addition to any garden. Those who are familiar with growing vegetables in the soil might want an aquaponic garden for a change. This should stretch you as a gardener and introduce you to new ways of gardening.
Planting with aquaponics is simple to understand. The name ‘aquaponics’ comes from ‘aquaculture’ (growing fish and other water animals) and ‘hydroponics’ (growing plants minus soil). It works by feeding plants with the nutrients in animal waste or discharge. Then, the cycle is complete by the plants cleaning the water that the fish swim in.
When gardening with aquaponics, there are a few challenges for you to deal with. Most notably, the pH of the water. The pH is essential, as you are, in part, caring for living creatures with the fish in the water. Doing your research into getting the right pH water to help both fish and plant – and ensuring this pH sticks – is an essential job for you as a gardener.
Aquaponics setups are a great feature in a gardener’s garden; they can produce several great plants! The vegetables you can grow in aquaponics are those which don’t need a lot of nutrient input.
Try growing these veggies:
- Lettuce
- Watercress
- Arugula
- Kale
- Cabbage
- Mint
- Herbs
- Okra
- Spring onions
- Leeks
- Radishes
- Spinach
- Tomatoes
- Cucumbers
- Broccoli
- Cauliflower
- Beans
Alongside vegetables, you can also grow decorative flowers in aquaponics.
3 – Fountains
Garden fountains are a great way to add dynamics to your garden without too much effort on your part. Fountains are soothing and so are perfect for those who like to relax in their garden.
Fountains can be bought, but there are plenty of ways to DIY a garden fountain for those who like to work their gardens themselves. Depending on what you want your garden fountain to look like, several aesthetic options are available. For those with lots of plants, a plant pot water fountain might be preferable to fit into the garden’s look.
For those looking for something a bit more dramatic, a patio water wall fountain might be a perfect choice. This fountain is practically a screen the size of a door full of falling water. It’s great for those looking for the faint sound of a waterfall to be the background music for late nights in the garden.
A disappearing water fountain will be great for anyone who only wants a fountain going every now and then. The collection of stones the fountain disappears into means your garden will look lovely, even when the fountain is turned off.
The Bottom Line: Adding Water Features Can Make Your Backyard More Interesting
Fountains can be made as easy or challenging to maintain as the gardener wants. They add visual interest, and soothing water sounds, and provide a respite for thirsty wildlife. For these reasons, they are a great addition to anyone’s garden.
She has a B.S.Ed. in Secondary Education/English and a Spanish Minor. In addition, she holds a Certificate in Natural Health from a fully-accredited program and is a Certified Herbologist. She pursued these natural wellness certifications due to her love for herb gardening.
Despite freelancing to make a living, her love is "all things home."
Deborah grew up in a family that grew a large vegetable garden and a fruit orchard, helping her parents pull weeds and can home-grown foods as part of her childhood. In fact, she had no idea that she could purchase veggies and fruits in pre-packed steel cans until she went to college and made a food run.
Today, she lives in Bertie County, North Carolina, an agricultural rural area with more chickens than people. She lives with her husband and two rescue pets a sweet toy fox terrier and a cat who showed up one day and moved into the house. Together, they enjoy DIY projects, furniture refinishing, gardening, and canning.
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