My name is Therese I am your resident garden pond expert (no I’m not but I always wanted to say that, however for the purposes of this website I guess I am the resident expert ,as I am the only one who has ever maintained a garden pond or water garden. I wouldn’t exactly call myself a garden pond expert, but my friends and family certainly think that I am, as they come to me for advice with all their garden and pond related problems. The fact that I have kept a garden pond and various other water features of one kind or another for the last fifteen years trouble free, might have something to do with that, but I just consider myself to have been lucky and a little creative rather than a talented pond expert . Well just recently my pond  luck appears to have run out.

Relocating Garden Pond Not an Easy Task

Last year we reluctantly decided to relocate our 12 year old garden pond, seen above ,from the edge of the garden, under the protection and shade of an old maple tree to the center of our yard ,directly outside the new dining room patio doors ,where we will be able to view the “new and improved” garden pond year round from either inside the house or on the new deck, (hubby still has to build the deck). We loved our old pond and its location under the tree , it was so quiet peaceful and serene ,a little piece of heaven where we could sit with a glass of wine or beer to unwind while we watched the pond fish play and the dragon flies swoop and glide from one water lily to the next.

The reason for relocating our garden pond oasis is the new neighbors. The city in their wisdom allowed developers to build a new subdivision on previously spare land behind and adjacent to our property, we are now overlooked on all sides, all our privacy stolen.
The seemingly ever open dining room window of the new semi next door was in such close proximity (3ft) to our old pond patio ,that each time we sat there it felt like we were eves dropping or inviting ourselves to their meals. We just felt we had to move the pond.

Surrounded now on all sides, our most private area after the shrubs and the new hedging kick in ,will be the center of the garden, so we replaced the dining room window with sliding doors that will once it is built, lead out on to a ten foot wide deck which will directly overlook the new garden pond.
Our old pond sat unused for over a year before we decided to move it, to tell the truth the feeling real or imagined, of being watched ,was so great the first year of the subdivision that no one went out in the garden much at all, not even the dog, the presence of people where there had been none previously, unnerved him ,and us ,I think.

That was the summer before last, last summer we decided enough was enough. We wanted our garden pond and backyard privacy back .So I started researching fast growing shrubs that liked clay, a lot of clay, as that’s what my back yard consists of mainly clay, very little topsoil soil, and checking into exactly just how high it was permissible by local by laws to build a garden fence. Not as high as we would of liked was the answer.
While all this research and planning was taking place we decided we may as well get on and move the garden pond to its new location as that was the only thing that we were actually certain about.
A dozen years I guess had somewhat dimmed our memories of how hard it had been digging in solid clay by hand, to excavate the hole for our first garden pond.That location had had the extra blessing of being in the shade for most of the day, the old maple tree not only provided shade while we worked, but had also I assume made the ground a little more workable than the new location, which is in bright baking sun for three quarters of the day and the ground as hard as granite. Rota tillers just bounced off  the ground was so hard. We contemplated hiring a mini excavator to get the job done, but they are expensive and various large garden features and two or three large and substantial plants would of needed to be moved just to get a digger in to the site .So we decided to persevere by hand (we would get there eventually)

Adequate Depth Of Garden Pond Is Crucial to Over Wintering Fish

Our old garden pond had not been quite deep enough, and in some very cold winters we occasionally lost fish, so one part at least if not all of the new pond had to be at least 3ft 6in deep, hubby who had always wanted koi rather than goldfish decided we may as well go the extra 6 in and dig the new garden pond deep enough for a koi pond.

The average garden pond built by most home owners in their backyards are by and large “water gardens” the main focus being beauty and tranquility for the garden. Both pond fish and plants are included, often featuring babbling brooks and cascading waterfalls. As the home owner becomes more experienced in pond and fish keeping they often want to add Koi to the pond but find they cannot as the average garden pond is not constructed to be a suitable home for keeping koi. This is precisely what happened to my husband he now saw this second garden pond excavation as his opportunity to be a koi owner.

Choose Fish For Your Garden Pond Carefully

Personally despite their charms I have always preferred the Kio’s smaller cousin the humble goldfish not anywhere near as particular as koi for pond depth and filtration and they don’t destroy  plants I am definitely a water gardener rather than a koi ponder. That is not to imply that my pond fish are not an important part of the pond, for I definitely wouldn’t want a garden pond without fish. Pond fish are definitely an integral part of any garden pond they are the entertainment. The soothing calming sound of gently running water from the falls, is only a backdrop to the hypnotic effect of watching the gold fish dart and dance from plant to plant in hope of flies or previously overlooked fish food crumbs.
It’s amazing how fast you can become mesmerized into their fishy world, caught up in the excitement of casting in a new supply of food, just so you can once again be amazed by the lightening speed in which the ponds fishy inhabitants gather from all directions to the exact point on the water’s surface where the food particles first broke its surface tension.

Be Aware of Potential Pond Predators.

Sorry for waffling a little their, but I have missed being able to sit beside my garden pond. Hubby thought it would be a good idea to build a koi style pond even if we only kept goldfish in it. We had had trouble with both herons and raccoons stealing fish they would both be deterred by the steep sides of a koi pond, with the deeper pond we would definitely not lose fish in even the coldest and harshest Canadian winters. Essentially a koi pond is mug shaped where a regular garden pond being a home for both goldfish and plants goes down in steps or layers.

With a lot of perseverance and hard labor we finally got the pond dug, a full four feet deep ten feet long by 7 ft wide.

The pond liner was scrubbed clean and cut and joined in places ,the joining of pond liner is an art form all unto itself the vagaries of which I will not dwell on here, perhaps in a later post, as what I have learned about joining and patching epdm pond liner will be of use to someone down the road. The pond liner was put into place and the pond filled ,this was the beginning of June last year.

I kid you not literally over night the weather changed, we had constant rain for three days, the rock hard solid clay that it had taken us weeks to dig out overnight caved in. Our new garden pond became a mud slide. I don’t know about where you live in the world, but this part of Niagara Ontario saw record rain falls for all of last summer. In short dry spots between bouts of torrential rain we repeatedly tried to re dig the pond, until we eventually came to the conclusion that having a garden pond that deep, in clay ground and rain was a lost cause. I never had such problems with my other pond only about a 70 feet away, but that was not so deep and had been dug with the plant shelves, perhaps it was the design that had made all the difference. Well whatever the reason there was to be no new garden pond that summer, the storms continued without abatement for most of the summer. We started this year not with a garden pond but a large muddy bowl shaped puddle.

The weather once again this year was against our pond digging endeavors. With rain setting records even beyond last year. I don’t know if it’s the effects of global warming but we don’t usually experience so much rain in the summer, by July the city is usually calling for hose bans.

All through the winter we had “pondered “our garden pond dilemma ,I was completely prepared to give in and settle for the shallower bowl shaped pond the wet weather and clay ground combination seemed to want to naturally create, I figured I could dig in a plant shelf, and  I might not even need a new liner as the clay ground was retaining the water extremely well . The old liner  was now not wide enough for the new pond, you see with each successive land slide the pond got wider and wider as the land collapsed.

Hubby on the other hand was still determined to have his koi pond ,he was again talking about cement ponds and retaining walls  all of which we had discounted on earlier occasions as the ground saw too much upheaval with freezing ground water and frost in the winter months. The best but way too expensive idea we came up with, was one of those huge poly resin water tanks they use on farms and at garden centers. To be able to sink one into the ground ,it would act as a giant preformed pond hopefully with strong enough sides with the help of the water pressure to hold up even in wet weather the earth around it. Although we could find the water tanks across the border at around $900 US we couldn’t find them on the Canadian side, for less than $2000, too bring one across the border would bring the price back up to the $2000 mark .Hubby had almost resigned himself to the idea of a shallower garden pond .Then as luck would have it we were out one Sunday just driving around we passed a farm that had one of these water tanks for sale and not just for sale but for sale for just $50.00.

Well it mattered not that it was an hour away from home or how we  were  going to get something that big home on a regular sized car trailer. That was a feet of achievement all on its own, which I will not go into here. But my husband was delighted he now for next to nothing,had the perfect vessel for our new garden pond ,all that remained now was to re dig the hole and insert the water tank before it had chance to rain again .The clay was still mud from the last rain but the hole was somewhat re dug ,when you guessed it, we had another torrential down pour that collapsed the pond walls  yet again, right before our eyes. Right then and there hubby resolved that all we could do was give in and was hire a mini excavator ,get the hole re dug yet again this time within a just a couple of hours and get tank inserted before it could have chance to rain again,he booked a digger for the following weekend .After two or three heavy showers and severe storm warnings for Niagara it was just a couple of days after the tornado touched down in Durham Ontario.The forecast for the weekend looked grim  ,they were forecasting electric storms again for the weekend he had booked the digger ,as a matter of fact it did get very very dark and apocalyptic looking but the rain held off ,but it may as well not have done, for there was going to be no garden pond dug that day either .Within half an hour of the digger arriving the digger itself had fallen on its side into the hole that we ourselves had dug for the garden pond.

I will not go into how and why this happened ,all I will say is men! . The upshot was, short of having to hire a crane, that at one point we seriously thought was going to be the only way of putting the digger back into an upright position. Hubby credit where credit is due devised and erected a rather ingenious wigwam out of 12 ft 4 x4 s he positioned it above the digger and gradually through a series of winching and jacking maneuvers managed to upright the digger in the hole. We had hoped it would then be able to dig itself a way out. No such luck, the thing wouldn’t start we had to hire a second digger to dig a ramp to get first digger out.

Two days,the services of one diesel mechanic,rental of  two diggers and $1200 later we now have what we hope is the beginnings of a new garden pond.
The point of my relating to you our garden pond drama and the lengths we were prepared to go to create our new garden pond, is that I wanted you to be aware just what an important garden focal point the pond had become for us. Not only for myself the confessed garden and plant addict,but for my husband who has not the slightest interest in anything that is green or has leaves. A garden pond is definitely a worthwhile addition to any garden that all members of the family will find pleasure in. Without the relaxing sound of gently running water without the colorful activity of the playful fish to watch my garden would not feel complete.

Follow with me as I rebuild my garden pond and bog garden I plan in future posts to discuss
Choosing a location for your garden pond
Deciding what kind of Pond liner is best for your purse and your location
Pond filters
Pond pumps
uv lights and filters
Solar lights, fountains and pumps
koi ponds
Pond fish
Pond plants
And garden decor and ornaments suitable for around the pond, and water features for small places where a garden pond is not possible.

I am not a money is no object person, I do my research for quality items found at the most reasonable prices. If it had not of been for the hand of fate let us say, we would have got our new garden pond for a very reasonable price . Let me also take this time to inform you that if you are thinking of making a large pond like ours and face similar ground problems it is possible to hire a mini excavator and driver for $90 per hour, I was not informed of this as it was my husband who rented the digger. Seeing as we had dug out most of our garden pond site ourselves by hand, it would have only taken a guy that knew how to properly operate a digger, about an hour to complete the task. So (guys) if you face similar circumstances when digging your garden pond, I suggest foregoing the temptation of reliving your childhood fantasies of being the driver of a life size Tonka toy, and hire an experienced driver, the job will get done in half the time and you will save money in the long run, do yourself a favor and learn by our garden pond mistakes.