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| Nymphaea nouchali |
Please take note this is only a brief
list of the most important aspects to consider and is not by any means comprehensive
For a professional fee I will
design, give advice and supervise the construction of a natural pool for you.
This is a subject that has
fascinated me for much of my life having had my first encounters with fish
ponds at my grandparents’ home as far back as I can remember. I used to sit for
hours at my grandmother fairly large fish pond fascinated by the wildlife that
it attracted in particular the whistling frogs, Hyperolius marmoratus or
Painted feed frog, as I now know them. I was also extremely fascinated by the
dragon flies, back swimmers and pond skaters that grandmother fishpond
attracted. I was not particularly interested in the bright orange gold fish
that she kept in it. As a result of this interest I first started constructing
small ponds as a school boy. While in Germany way back in time I got to know
about the company re-natur in Germany that specialises in the construction and
supply of materials for natural pools
Faszination Gartenteich written by Wolfram
Franke.
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| Crinum paludosum |
Design and functionality
Most of those who give into the
temptation to construct of have a natural pond constructed for them are going
to want a pond that is a peasant blend of good design and high functionality,
in short it must look good at the same time serving its purpose of attracting
the largest variety of wildlife into the garden as possible. This is easy to do
if the designer knows his or her subject well and follows a few basic rules
There are things that are desirable
to have and some that are necessary, what is desirable is not always necessary.
If the pool looks like a dogs breakfast it will probably work but not as well
as if it is well planned with open patches of water and all the plants in their
own preferred places and it will certainly look a lot better if it is well
planned
Size of pool
For a number of reasons the larger
the pool the better, however ponds the size of an average bucket can work which
can and will attract the odd insect of small frog. Generally the larger the
pool the more stable it is the more wildlife it will attract and the easier it
is to keep in ecological balance.
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| Painted Reed FrogHyperolius marmoratus |
Depth of the pool
To be most successful the pool must
have both shallow and deep sections, most of the plants will only grow in
relatively shallow water leaving the deeper sections to remain free of
vegetation which is a desirable and necessary design factor
Shallow areas must be created for
the planting of most of the aquatics that are desirable for planting in a
natural pool
Movement of the water
It is desirable that there is some
movement of the water but this is not necessary for the pond to be successful.
The provision of a small low volume
pump that pumps daily during the hours of daylight is a most desirable addition
to any pond, the pump could be powered by a solar panel. Directing the flow of
water over a pebble or gravel stream or over a waterfall will introduce a
considerable of extra oxygen into the water which is of particular benefit on
hot humid days with little air movement.
Free access into and out of the pool
The design must allow creatures that
fall into the pool in error to have a way to escape without being doomed to
drowning
Safety of young children
The pool must be designed in a
manner that it is not easy for small children to fall into it and drown. Where
this is not possible or for additional safety a suitable fence that allows the
unrestricted passage of desirable creatures to reach the pool must be erected
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| Nymphoides thunbergiana |
Construction materials
I am not going to go into any detail
on this aspect other than to mention a few materials that can be used.
Where the ground water level is high
enough all that is required is to dig out a hole which will soon fill with
water.
Natural clay can be used to create a
natural pond liner
Various grades of plastic can be
used
Concrete
Bricks and mortar
Fibre glass
These are the materials that are
most often used to create ponds and pools
Construction methods
Again I will not go into detail on
this aspect of pool construction as there are many methods depending on a
number of factors.
Containers can be converted to small
ponds
Just about any container that holds
water can be made into a micro pond which attract wildlife such as frogs and
dragon flies
If anyone needs more information
please contact me.
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| A newly emerged dragonfly busy pumping up its wings |
Water supply
Water to keep the pool filled can be
obtained from the following sources
Mains water
Rain water capture from roofs
Water capture from air conditioners
Boreholes
Pumps and Filters
Neither pumps nor filters are essential
however both can improve the conditions within the pool for a number of
creatures.
The running times of pumps will be
determined by both the design as well as the preference of the owner of the
pool. Solar panels can be used to provide power for the pumps.
Bio filters planted with plants can
be constructed that provide both filtration as well as desirable features to
add interest to the design.
When using a filter do not forget to
use a leaf trap.
Use only energy efficient pumps,
most designed for use in Koi ponds are far more efficient than the majority of
equivalent capacity pumps supplied for swimming pool use
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| Snoring Puddle Phrynobatrachus natalensis |
Décor
Décor such as waterfalls, streams,
rocks, branches can be added
Planting
Plant either directly into the soil
provided or into planting containers.
Plastic crates lined with shade
cloth hessian or even newspaper is ideal to plant aquatic plants into
Planting medium
Use low nutrient clay, sand or small
natural river stones.
Nutrition
Nutrition is very important but be
very, very careful not to over nitrify the water apply a little at a time and
wait for results. Apply at the point of use if at all possible.
Agricultural grade fertiliser rolled
up in a piece of news paper,
Agricultural grade slow release
fertiliser rolled up in a piece of news paper,
Grow sticks
are the most suitable sources of
nutrients for your natural pond.
One can add liquid fertiliser to the
water but be extremely careful.
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| Running Frog Kassina senegalensis |
Maintenance
Control of duck weed Lemna species
is most important because if left it can very rapidly get out of control.
Control all fast growing species and those that move out of their allocated
zone before they get out of hand and take over the pond.
Sludge may need to be removed from
time to time. Bio filters will need cleaning from time to time, plants growing
in bio-filters will need cutting back from time to time to remove nutrients
from the system.
Control of Mosquitos
Mosquitos could become a temporary
problem in a newly constructed natural pool but there is no need to panic
whatsoever the problem will resolve it’s self as the pond matures and is
colonised by insects that eat mosquito such as Dragonfly larvae, back swimmers
of the family Notonectidae and
pond skaters of the family Gerridae
Mosquitos can also be controlled by
the introduction of suitable small carnivorous indigenous fish such as Barbus
viviparus (bowstripe barb). If the mosquitos become a problem they can easily
be controlled with Mosquito wise, which is a biopesticide containing the
Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. israelensis
Selection of plants
Beware of fast growing fast
multiplying plants in particular grasses and sedges because most become
dominant taking over the entire pond in time making it a dogs breakfast.
Kniphofia pauciflora below is most worthwhile to plant in your pool because it is very attractive and is almost extinct in the wild
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| Kniphofia pauciflora |
Chlorophytum bowkeri
Crinum paludosum
Cristella dentata
Cyperus dives
Cyperus sexangularis
Cyperus textilis
Eulophia angolensis
Gunnera perpensa
Ipomoea ficifolia
Kniphofia pauciflora
Kniphofia rooperi
Ludwigia stolonifera
Nesaea radicans
Nymphaea nouchali var. caerulea
Nymphoides thunbergiana
Persicaria attenuata
Persicaria serrulata
Phragmites australis
Potamogeton pusilis
Potamogeton schweinfurthii
Ranunculus multifidus
Schoenoplectus scirpoides
Typha capensis
Xyris capensis
Zantedeschia aethiopica
Dragon flies
A variety of colourful dragon flies
will quickly make your new natural pool their home
Shrimps
The fresh water shrimp Caridina
nilotica is a useful addition to the natural pool because it is a scavenger and
algae eater which does very well and multiplies very rapidly in a pool that is
free of large fish.
Frogs
Afrixalus fornasinii Greater
Leaf-folding frog
Hyperolius marmoratus Painted Reed
Frog
Hyperolius argus Argus Argus Reed Frog
Schismaderma carens Red Toad
Phrynobatrachus natalensis Snoring Puddle Frog
Kassina senegalensis Running Frog
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| Greater leaf folding frog Afrixalus fornasinnii |
Fish
Be extremely careful when deciding
to introduce fish into your pond in particular if it is a very small pond as
fish can do a lot of damage to the aquatic ecosystem in particular eating
plants and or eating desirable insects such as dragonflies, water boatmen and
pond skaters.
The introduction of suitable small
carnivorous indigenous fish such as Barbus viviparus bowstripe barb
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| Bowstripe Barb Barbus viviparus |
.For a professional fee I will
design, give advice on and supervise the construction of a natural pool for you
Links to further information
Mosquito wise is a biopesticide containing the Bacillus thuringiensis subsp.
israelensis
Indigenous Frogs
Insects
Plants
Michael Hickman
Landscape Design and Rehabilitation Specialist
Tel: +27 82 061 2593
michael@ecoman.co.za
22.02.17
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