Blog: Making my raised pond into an essential habitat
In autumn 2022, I took the plunge (sorry) and had my pond rebuilt and resited – but how do you go about stocking a small pond for wildlife? If you’d like to read more about the pond building, and why I moved it, here’s the post about building a raised pond from recycled materials. For general tips, visit my page on wildlife ponds. Here’s more on wildlife ponds for city gardens.
The pond was filled in November and I deliberately let it settle before adding new plants in early summer. In rainy areas, allow the pond to fill up naturally over the wetter winter months. If you have healthy water and mud from an old pond, keep some to add to the new one. Especially if you fill it with tap water, the new one is a ‘sterile’ environment. Wait a few days for the chlorine to evaporate and the temperature to adjust, then add your old pond water, etc. This is bursting with life from the old ecosystem, both visible and microscopic. However, don’t add water from a pond that’s not in your garden and you don’t know. You may be introducing pests or invasive species you’re unaware of.
A note on the pond – it is made of recycled materials, fossils, stones, shells, tiles, cherished pots, and even plates I’ve collected over the years. It’s something of a memory wall. The tilted plates are being used by the birds as birdbaths, while the sloping stones make it easy for them to drink, even when the level is low, as you can see in the pictures.
Stocking a new small pond for wildlife – Essential barley straw
One easy and green way to prevent ‘pea soup’ ponds, especially in spring, is by using small barley straw bundles. You can buy them widely at garden centres and online. Simply drop them into the water and let it do its stuff. I did this in December and have had no problems. While it does not kill existing algae, it inhibits new growth. No one’s quite sure how it works. It’s thought that when exposed to sunlight and oxygen, barley straw produces a chemical that inhibits algal growth.
It’s only with the recent warm weather that the pond’s going a bit green – time for a new bale.
Dwarf yellow water lily
I did have two plants saved from my original pond which were planted immediately. Now that the new pond is at least 45cm deep, the dwarf yellow water lily loves it. The old pond was very shallow, meaning its leaves grew too high and flopped everywhere. Water lilies don’t like shallow water! They offer shade, which is vital to many underwater creatures and a landing surface for many invertebrates.
Stocking a new small pond for wildlife – Gardener’s garters for height
The other old plant was gardener’s garters (Phalaris arundinacea var. picta). I love this grass, growing to about 1.5m, with variegated green and cream leaf blades. It provides height and moves wonderfully in the breeze. It sits on one of the marginal shelves. Be warned – it is very invasive! It took three of us to drag it out of the old pond and the roots/stolons had burst the plastic planting basket. I only kept a small part and it’s at the narrow end of the pond, in a tough Root Pouch. One to keep an eye on and remove excess growth each year.
Oxygenating starwort
Oxygenators are the unglamorous workhorses of the pond but essential nonetheless. I chose starwort (Callitriche). It lives submerged and is active in autumn and winter. Insects shelter in their tangled masses and plants are happy in still or flowing water.
Stocking a new small pond for wildlife – Water hawthorn – deep water plant
I’m most excited about the water hawthorn (Aponogeton distachyos), which was shown to me by staff at Lincolnshire Pond Plants (this is where all my new plants came from). This deep-water plant has ovoid leaves that sit on the surface and strongly scented white flowers, which I’m told, can go on blooming until November. Also known as Cape pondweed, it can be almost evergreen in mild winters.
Lesser bulrush for height
I’m a little concerned about this one, as it hasn’t broken the surface yet! The lesser bulrush, narrow-leaf cat-tail or reedmace (Typha laxmannii) is smaller than the more familiar T. latifolia. It still grows to a minimum of 1.2m, with slender dark green leaves and typical brown bulrush flower spikes.
Stocking a new small pond for wildlife – Bog plants
During winter, I created a bog bed next to the long edge of the pond. It’s easy to do – dig out the area you want to about a spade’s depth and cover that with a pond liner. Pierce it with a couple of holes so it can drain slowly (or not at all if you need the soil permanently wet). Backfill with soil and plant up as required. In a dry area like North-East England, this gives you the chance to grow lush, large-leaved plants that would normally struggle.
My final new plant here is the lizard’s tail or American swamp lily (Saururus cernuus). The name refers to the pendulous, nodding fragrant flower spikes, held on 30cm stems above heart-shaped bright green leaves.
Other plants I’ve divided and added to this area are Rodgersia, Ligularia Othello and Desdemona. There’s a space being filled by self-seeded nasturtiums at the driest end. When dormant, I’m planning to add the shieldleaf Rodgersia (Astilboides tabularis).
A warning over pond plant disposal
Never dispose of pond plants in any waterways. The only way to do so is by composting or green waste collections. Many non-native species have become invasive and damaged natural ecosystems. Some of the plants I’ve chosen are non-native, and I’ll be very careful about getting rid of excess growth.
The birds are already loving it – let’s hope other creatures take up residence. One end is sloped to allow an escape route for anything that falls in.
