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Journal How not to build a wildlife pond...

This looks really good. I'm not allowed a pond (the wife is too scared it'll kill our toddler) but I've been granted permission for a shallow / marginal region, so looking forward to giving that a go


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What a lovely time of year for your pond - don't go overboard on the vino on these long summer nights, eh? Easily done with such a nice spot to relax beside :D
 
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Thanks guys, in all honesty im amazed at how well this has established in such a small space of time. The garden is thick with all manner of life, even had a few hedgehogs visiting... and a fox that has pissed all over the lawn causing yellow patches! :mad:

Hi all,
Very nice. Is the flower from Egeria densa?
sure is, i hadnt even noticed them and then they came and went in a matter of 2 days.
 
Having had an absence for far too long due to having a kid and renovating a house, I'm now hoping to be around the forum a bit more and get rescape a couple of my tanks. Having come back on I had a notification of this thread and which reminded me it even existed.

The pond is still going great, this year is the first year with no sign of blanket weed at all and the plants have battled it out between themselves, some winners and many losers in the fight for space.

This is a pic from last summer and I'll update with some from this year later this week.

It's great to be back and I'll see you all around the forum
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Thanks guys, it's good to be back, the creative juices are flowing already.

So pic from tonight (past it's best this year) as you can see I've just let it be this year, no trimming or watering. Given how dry it has been it has done pretty well, there was just s few inches of water this time last week, thankfully now full again.

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Almost a year later and the plants were taking over so in Feb I had a big clear out, you wouldn't know it though
No frogs again this year, loads of other life but frogs just aren't interested. Maybe because there is a half acre pond just a couple of hundred yards away??
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Looking great. It's surprising how fast the plants grow. I put a wildlife pond in my brothers garden last may and I had to rip a good third of the plants out to even see any water. It surprised me a little as it's a rain fall runoff fed pond from his garage roof. Wish my tank grew plants as well.
We were quite lucky, already seen damselflies and had masses of frog spawn.

In need of more thinning so the lilies get some light.

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Iain, Frogs will aim for the pond which is "ready" first, assuming there are no physical barriers. I think it's something to do with Glycolic acid. Either way, it's whatever scent algae produce, the frogs instinctively know that this the larvae's first food. During a pond rescue I watched frogs spawn in the rainfilled tracks of construction ( destruction really ) vehicles which were full of green algae despite the pond a few yards away being their historic spawning site. I've seen them spawn in househould grates where there has been algae growing on the clay top. The trick is to site the pond in full sun. A well known surveyor of Great crested newt sites used to regularly report a pond as S.O.D. Shaded out, dead. HTH.
 
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