# New pond and potted plants - substrate?



## Franks (22 Jun 2018)

Hi all,

I'm coming from hi-tec planted aquariums i.e. timed Co2 injection and water column ferts.

I've just built a small barrel pond  for the back garden with a lava rock and 3 sponge plant pot bio-filter including pump which adds some nice water movement while it cleans. I'd like to keep this pond low maintenance. 

I have 5 potted pond plants and want to know if I'll be okay without using any form of soil and instead using simple pea-gravel?

I plan to plant; 

small water lily
Flowering Rush
Barred Horsetail
Mare's Tail (Might swap that for Pennywort as I don't want that in my garden if some comes off and finds it's way into the soil!)
Club Rush
Hosta Plantain Lily (marginal submerged)

The pond is located South facing and has lots of sun.

I've read lots of advice online with success using pea-gravel and some saying they use soil (I've got aquatic soil if required but I know it does still cause a bit of a mess and goes against my low maintenance approach.

I could always dose a fert once a week - perhaps even use fert plugs in the pea-gravel which I also have.

Any advice would be great.


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## ceg4048 (22 Jun 2018)

Hi,
    Pea gravel will work, or any calcines clay product such as found in bonsai nurseries will work.

Cheers,


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## Franks (5 Jul 2018)

Thanks Ceg!


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## tam (5 Jul 2018)

The way to do it non messily is to line the basket with hessian if it doesn't have very fine mesh. Then fill with soil and top off with gravel. Then very gently lower it in until the water is just level with the surface (you can do this in a bucket if you want). Then let the water soak in and the air bubble out. Once it's soaked carefully lower the rest of the way. If you plunge it straight in the air wooshes out, and the part dry soil puffs up in clouds.


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## zozo (8 Jul 2018)

Soil type doesn't realy matter indeed, but mind it depends on the plant spieces how well they take a moderate fert regime over the water column. You mind want to read Ceg's sticky for that *Little Shop of Horrors - How EI frightened the gardener*

The plants in your list are relative light and fert hungry plants, wont do very good on inert gravel without sufficient water column fertilization.

You could reduce this fert schedule a bit with using a desent organic soil and if you dont want to make to much of a mess, do as Tam describes.. But than rather take a clay rich lily soil. This is because of the added clay rather consistant in texture addhesive and if not disturbed to much it sticks very will to its shape. Than for example put a pantyhose sock first in the basket, fill that partialy with the clay based soil put the plant in and cap it with a few cm of pea gravel. The sock prevents it from flushing out to much. Non clay based pond soils have less addhesive properties and easily fall appart it doesn't stick, that's garantied always a mess if disturbt.


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