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Thanks for all the pointers. I wonder if I'm just having too much hessian sticking up above the pot then, I find the hessian is still there, but the frayed edges turn to mush and end up looking a real mess. I've got some fabric pots and finer mesh pots to try so I'll have a play and see how...

I need to pull and repot some of my pond plants - one of the things I find is that the hessian lining degrades and goes almost algae like when I use plastic planting baskets. I also tend to end up with roots sticking through the mesh but I think that probably says more about how attentive I am...

That's come a long way in a couple of months - looks great!

Good point. Thank you! My Airlift's arrived today, they're tiny but about right for the pond sizes. Hopefully picking up a pump tomorrow.

Can't really suggest a thickness but I always think of perspex as being quite flexible but also quite brittle at that sort of thickness. You could always look at acrylic as well - there's a lot of places on ebay now that will cut to size both acrylic and perspex in different thicknesses.

Sorry to come back with another question - I've been looking at air pumps, and was going to go for something like a Hozelock 320 - so 2 outputs, 320 lph total, not sure if Hozelock pumps are considered a decent brand, but it seemed OK for the price and TBH this is my first ever pump of any kind...

I'd totally missed that - my brain read the airlift requirements and I ran with that. Thanks @martin-green - saved me a world of pain!

Cool, thank you both. As you said @zozo - the airbox isn't fully waterproof - the price is for the pump and a weatherproof box but the Pontec is fully weatherproof without boxing. I was debating the Superfish, boxed one because I thought it might be neater but I think you're right and I'd...

If you highlight some text in the compose window and then click the link icon, it populates the Text box for you and you can just paste your link in.

@Zeus. - There's a link option in the share options at the top right and bottom left - it's a bit more obvious at the bottom left of the page, click the link icon and it copies to clipboard; Top right, you have to expand the share option and the link is there;

Whilst researching UK DIY Airlifters to check suitable fittings I found this site - they have a few airlifts in different, smaller sizes which should be about right for my two smaller ponds. I've been looking for suitable pumps on Amazon, any opinions on these two, or other recommendations...

Ah no worries - will def be interesting to see what they are once they're bigger. I occassionally find a smooth newt in the garden, usually nowhere near the water but somewhere damp, and there's small ditch/puddle on one of my regular walks, right on the side of a bridleway! It's mostly boggy...

This is looking really good - agree with everyone else, it'll start to soften once stuff starts growing, especially if you can encourage some growth on the stones as well. You definitely made the right call to stop and rework the edges to cover the liner.

@Gill - I thought Smooth newts were protected from sale in the UK, did you buy them online or is it a conservation type thing? Not trying to catch you out or anything - I love newts so am just curious how you managed to get hold of eggs.

I'm still not sure what approach to take but I'm doing my research still - @zozo, thought I'd post this in case you find it interesting, lots of good videos from these guys, some talk throughs, builds etc. https://www.airlift.eu/phpBB/viewtopic.php?f=122&t=15802

Hey thanks for the replies guys, I've been watching the videos @zozo, very interesting - do you run an airlift in Mission Bathtub? I've never setup up any sort of pond or aquarmium pump before, so I'm still trying to work out the best approach for such small ponds, at the moment I'm really...

Wondered if anyone can point me in the right direction for pumps for my selection of tiny ponds/tubs. I have a small tub pond that I use really as a plant nursery, plus a belfast sink pond, and a (currently very sad looking) wildlife pond. I've tried cheap solar pumps but they're not really up...

I last posted in this thread back in December 2017 - I lost one propagator and was really struggling but the other one has gone OK and has been ticking over since then on just water topups and nothing else. Propagator is heated - I haven't had it constantly, but I try to keep it on as much as...

Wondered if anyone can ID this pond plant and offer some pointers. Picked up a bunch of random plants last year end of season but have no label for this one - it's growing flat so my first thought was just to repot and go from there but any advice would be great. Thanks.

It doesn't look much but my belfast sink pond is slowly taking shape so I thought I'd post it up... I have Taro growing in pots either side of it now and I'm hoping I can get the area around it planted up more next year, get some wood or a rock in a few more plants in there to break the...

Windowsill is sadly not an option as the draught seems to kill everything. Since I posted this I changed the bulb for a 6500k, but everything bar the creeping jenny looks very unhappy. One Marsilea's dead, the other is mostly, and my lovely hygrophilia is still about the same size but...

Thought I'd post this because I had a hard time finding any I could walk in and buy, and Amazon damaged them in the post, so in case anyone has been struggling to find these. Wilko have Growarm 100's in stock currently for £14...

Wow that's really taken off!

Thanks @dw1305, that makes perfect sense. They're about 1m from a window so they do get some ambient light, but obviously at this time of year it's a negligible amount. Lights are on probably not on long enough either - at the moment they're getting 12 hours but they're not on a timer, however...

Hi, Did have a google/search here but didn't find much so I just wanted to ask your opinions re this. I have a few plants doing well but putting out vertical growth, and taller than I'd expect as if they're growing towards the light. Is this because there isn't enough light, or does the light...

@tam - Thanks, I've got some shade netting over it at the moment, it's taken off since I added the shading, shaded Java in the same propagator started growing straight upwards for the light, so I've seperated them and removed the shade from the Java. I might get some proper lighting sorted like...

Thanks for all the replies. @tam lol. great description of cautious watering, thank you! @kadoxu - Soil is Jon Innes No. 3. That's some great growth you have there, exactly what I'm hoping for. I'll move the lights closer and see what happens. This is going to be a tricky one because I...

Thanks @tam - I read the instructions cover to cover but there's hardly any useful pointers in there, it says either use capillary matting, or if you don't want containers in the propagator to water the compost cautiously. Not really sure how to water it cautiously! lol. I have the same model...

I've been trying this method after loosing my first batch of Micranthemum. This time I setup 2 heated propagators, one MC and one HC but it looks they're both headed the same way! I'm having a hard time keeping the water topped up without it being soaked - can you run these propagators totally...

Cool, thank you both! I originally bought it to combine with some other plants and try one of these mini bowl ponds @parotet posted some time back, but it's doing so well I'd love to just see what it does, and I'm still getting a feel for the various plants requirements. @tam - I didn't know...

@dan4x4 That's cool! I love it when nature gets involved in more industrial processes like that.

Hi, Bit of an odd question I know. I received a Hydrocotyle in rockwool, stuck it in a tiny pot and soaked it just to keep it alive until I could plant it properly. It's really taken off and I kinda like it where it is, I'm getting the hang of not killing it. It's still planted in just in...

Thanks for the replies and all the info @zozo and @Chubbs, much appreciated. @Chubbs - that's some serious growth rate! I think the algae is definitely a result of the small water volume and increased light as @zozo suggests, but I hadn't considered the extra light might lead to a demand for...

The wierd thing is that this plant was seperate from the bulb when it arrived, so I had a healthy plant that dumped its leaves, and a bulb that I thought would do nothing, putting out fresh shoots - both in the same jar! I briefly wondered if the bulb took all the nutrients out of the water...

I think I figured this out - having said nothing had changed, my GF walked in and asked why the light was so much closer to the Tiger Lotus! :oops: Without realising I'd moved the jar nearer to the light and think that was enough the mess everything up. Changed the water out, less light...

I've just been taking a close look at the jar and actually there is some brown fluffy algae on the stem of the Tiger Lotus that's missing it's leaves. Would that be enough to upset the balance this much though? Thanks.

Hi, I've been keeping a Tiger Lotus in a jar, when it arrived it had split from the bulb so I planted both as advised by the seller, all good. Some duckweed and more recently (a week or so) frogbit in the jar, and some Monte Carlo as well, all doing pretty well. The Tiger Lotus looked great...

That's a good question - to be honest I hadn't given it much thought! The sleepers have been in the garden since we moved in, about 6 years ago. The pond's been there about 4 years I think, in it's first incarnation, and the wood was all piled up at one end, sticking down into it - we had frogs...

@martin-green - got some today! Weather is rubbish here and the ground around the pond is pretty much just mud, but hopefully you can imagine it with the helixine established and the bog gardens growing more. I want to get a lot more plants in the pond too, esp along the back edge. It looks...

@tam - I've seen a lot of people doing well with window still growth, even here in the UK. @kadoxu - Thanks, I'll take a look at those, I've seen them mentioned elsewhere on here too. @Edvet - at last I have photo's...please excuse my very amateur setup, I've just kind of thrown stuff in to...

Thanks @Konsa I've added some more light so I'll see how I go. @Edvet - I tried to get pics, but it just looked like a mass of jars and propagators with half dead plants in! lol. I'll try and get some decent photo's at the weekend tho. Thanks.

OK apologies for what started out as a small question, turned into an essay. Just curious how you approach lighting when you have multiple propagators? I've been reading about watts per litre, getting very confused about 'high and bright' lighting for java moss etc. - does that just mean as...

@zozo - I thought it was a great video, I was more referring to my total lack of experience with cement - that guy makes it look so easy! Kinda wishing we had more rocks to go on the ledges now, we've used them all up on the bank. On the plus side, all the rocks were free because my GF's...

Hey sorry guys, I missed the new replies. My Java is now in a jar, plenty of light, daily water changes. I think I can see the tiniest bit of new growth. Thanks for the info @Mick.Dk - I have some Christmas moss also so that's quite interesting, although at the moment that's waaay healthier...

Cool video @zozo, thanks - not sure I'm ready for such hardcore undertakings! @Edvet - I know what you mean, we have rocks but no waterfall, and I've also setup a mini stumpery kind of thing. I try and make everything look as natural as I can but I often think it all looks a bit contrived in...

Thanks @Chubbs - nice to know there is hope!

Thanks @Konsa I have green bits on a couple of clumps, the rest is probably done with then! I'm wondering if I have too much light going on as well - I've seen a few people saying it grows better in the shaded areas of their tanks and that ties up with what you're saying. I'll take your advice...

Made a little progress today, hopefully this looks a little more pond like now - it's not as uniform a shape as it looks in the pictures, the banks are actually quite varied. The rocks aren't staying where they are either, we just put them out to keep the liner in place overnight! So the...

Apologies for spamming the help section even more! I am also reading up, just haven't found a consistent answer to this yet, google results so far seem quite varied. I'm trying to grow java moss emersed, thought I'd try a few variations and learn by seeing which worked best. I have it on some...

Might be the size of the image? There's a thread on upload problems here. I tried to upload a jpg last night and initially it was failing because I hadn't resized it, made it smaller and it uploaded fine. On the plant front, there are plenty of people on here who can help you better than me...

Here's the pond I mentioned with the branches/logs. I'd completely forgotten they were capped with stones as well.

Thanks @Konsa - looks like I have my way to wet then! I'm going to replant shortly and aim for something nearer your setup. I'll see how they go and post back. Thanks again.

Thanks @mort - the soil depth will be 2-3 inches deep all the way around, the ledge for the soil to sit on is level, the ground surrounding the pond isn't, hence the fluctuation in depth. The flipped turf sounds like a good idea, I'm sure a little soil in the water would be natural anyway in...

Hi, Wondered if anyone could point me in the right direction on this. I'm still new to growing plants emersed so I started out with a few in jars and propagators to get a feel for lighting and substrates etc. I bought some Micranthemum Monte Carlo, purely because I liked the look of it, and...

Thought I'd post this in a new thread. Recently redone our wildlife pond, and one of the things we hated about the last one was the visible liner, so this one has more vertical the sides, with a slope in one bank to make it wildlife friendly. Dug a ledge for the buried part of the liner to sit...

Cool, thank you both!

Thanks for the replies guys. I think you might be right, I'll keep an eye on which leaves are doing it, also might move these so most of the plant is submerged as they've been like this for a little while now with just the lower part submerged and apart from the black they seem quite happy. I...

Cool, was obsessed with these and Dragonfly nymphs when I was a kid. It's come a long way in a month, great footage.

More noob questions, should be easy for you guys but I've really no idea! The larger (but still tiny) floating plant - I had a few of these in my pond, I added the duckweed that you can see around them but I wasn't sure if these were more mature duckweed, or something else? The second one...

Really interesting stuff - I've been reading about aerial advantage from stumbling across the Walstad method, being new to this, I wanted to start very low tech. Photoremediation is new to me though, all really fascinating, although the more I browse these forums, the more I feel I need to...

Cool, looking very healthy!

Still seeing this issue, doesn't really seem to be spreading though (at least not quickly), and other than that, the plant seems quite healthy and is putting out new growth, I'm a bit baffled.

I don't know much about this sort of thing but I thought maybe a fly larvae of some sort, like crane fly or similar?

Cool, thanks a lot for the replies guys, and thanks for the explanation @foxfish.

I'm a little confused about capping - I keep seeing the beautiful tanks, usually aquasoil but they never look like they've been capped. I'm curently dabbling with lo/no-tech just getting a feel for things, keep having issues with the substrate ending up in the water! Have substrates like...

Wasn't sure where else this would fit; I was looking for pond realted stuff and found this article from a few years ago on the BBC about using planted rafts to help purify polluted lakes etc. I know it's an old article but I thought it was still an interesting read for those (like me) who...

I've been working on some really simple planted jars to get me started, just peat moss and aquarium compost or jonh innes no. 3 under a very fine gravel/sand cap. A couple of times now when planting, or when filling the container, I've managed to disturb the cap enough and subtrate has clouded...

Yes sorry - I've been keeping them for ages and it's taken me a long time to get the hang of keeping them alive! I've always thought one would look great in a terrarium or similar so I was quite excited to see that in there! Do you mind if I ask what the carpet plant is in there too? The whole...

Cool, thanks @AndyOx - we're going to keep it out of the water and in a contained bog garden - we've made several out of big pots that we've sunk into the ground. Let hope it stays contained! Although I never seem to have much luck with the more invasive plants - I've been trying to nurture...

These are all beautiful - this is my favourite, is that a maidenhair in there or just something similar looking?

Wondered if anyone with experience of Alternanthera Reineckii can confirm if this is a normal way for it to grow? Mine are nice and bushy at the bottom, but seem to be getting a bit leggy, although they don't look ridiculous in that there isn't miles of stem between leaves. I have several and...

Hi, I've hit problems with a couple of plants currently but I thought a thread for each would be easier than one massive post. My Hygrophila Corymbosa leaves are blackening - not all of them, and for the most part, it seems healthy. I have it growing emersed in a very large jar, mix of...

Cool, thanks for the pointers @dan4x4 - hopefully it'll be here for the weekend and I can get it planted. I'm going to replant most of the stuff I setup already as well, as I've been doing a bit of googling about low tech and jar setups and I want to revise what I've done. I've also got a...

Thanks @dan4x4 bizarre coincidence, I got a bit obsessed with Tiger Lotus after seeing this on IG. I took a look at Aquarium Gardens and ordered one, so thanks for the recommendation. If you have any pointers let me know, probably not my smartest move but I couldn't help myself! lol...

Cool, look forward to seeing them grow!

I lost all of the Bihar, just totally turned to mush. The yellow I think might be down to not enough light so I've setup a daylight spectrum LED above those now. I've also started growng some hygrophilia which looked OK for about 5 minutes but now has some black leaves! I've been reading...

Hi, I bought a few plants to try and get started understanding how to grow these, pretty low tech re my thread here. I've put a few in jars, some with more water, some with less, some into propagators. All using rainwater only, no heating, LED light on for most of the time. I'm seeing one...

Very nice, how long have these been going so far?

Like the look of this - how's it getting on?

Hi @ArioNb - you might have better responses starting a new thread specifically about the problem you're seeing as that would probably get more responses TBH. I'm very new to all this, the only things I can think to ask is; How long has the container been setup for - it looks quite well...

Thanks @zozo - I've been reading a few threads on the conversion from emersed to submersed, commercial growing methids, melt etc and it makes way more sense now. I've redone the jar, and put everything else into propagators. It currently looks a real mess but it's really just to see what...

Thanks @zozo - So glad you pointed that out! I just assumed because they came out of a flooded tank at the shop, they had to grow that way, so I topped the jar right up after I took that photo! :oops: I'm just redoing it all, making a bit of a mess of it tho TBH, first I put soil with gravel on...

Cool, thanks @mort we'll definitely shift both of those in that case. We needed plants for the bogs so that works out pretty well!

It's not planted up yet, but just for the sake of sharing, here's my container. It's actually too short for the taller plants, not sure if I can split those, or if they'll come down a bit when I take them out of the pots. It's also a bit crazy optically, so I'll have to see how I feel about...

That makes sense, I was a bit baffled because they were adamant it wasn't a pond plant, and I knew it was in our pond! lol. You're right though, it's been growing on the edge, mostly out of water bar the roots. I'm debating moving a clump of each to the bog garden once it's setup, good spot...

Cool link, thanks @dan4x4 - I've started readin throught that, very useful. I was leaning towards ADA Amazonia primarily because I loved the results people got with their Wabi-Kusa, but I'm all for exploring different substrates, especially if they're cheaper. My initial container is going to...

I'm still looking into substrates, from looking at some of the wabi-kusa I was thinking ADA Amazonia, topped with some gravel to help anchor things, does that sound reasonable? I'm hoping a bag will be enough for a few experiments, I'd like to try more of an open wabi-kusa as well as some jars...

thanks @TheBubblingScot - that looks like it. Interesting because I saw the same plant in someone's garden a week or so ago, and they told me I couldn't possibly have it growing in my pond!

Cool, thanks - I'm working my way through your plant list on google now. This sort of thing really appeals to me as a starting point, my brain can't cope with too much technical stuff at once!

Thanks for the link @techfool - I'll take a look. @dan4x4 - That jar's very cool, what's the surface plant you have in there?

Unfortunately we siliconed the plug in to make sure the sink doesn't leak! I think I'll be draining it. It will be easy enough this year as nothing will be established anyway, and we'll just be planting pots which we can move out no problem. My initial concern was the underside, I hadn't...

Thanks @Bart Hazes - I thought perhaps they'd be good for a while and then die out but I was thinking they might make a nice starting point, just to get a feel for planting and growing. Interesting blog BTW, I'm going to have to make some time to have a good read of that. @techfool - Do you...

Thanks for the extra advice @TheBubblingScot and @martin-green. I think I'm going to drain it as @zozo suggested, but there's nowhere I can move it to, so the hay bales sound like they might be worth a look as well - I really don't want to crack it! Seen a couple of planters in smaller sinks...

We managed to get a new liner, went for a reduced offcut of quite a thick rubber liner in the end. Went to fit it at the weekend though and there were so many creases we've pulled it back out and are going to simplify the shape a little! We had a tiny pool at one end, just way too small for...

Aaagh! my GF just found this; https://www.amazon.co.uk/River-Embankment-Mat-Liner/dp/B00IMJ6DG6/ref=sr_1_1?s=outdoors&ie=UTF8&qid=1505474312&sr=1-1&refinements=p_4%3AAquagart So maybe that would have sorted the original problem. lol. Still, I think the new pond will be nicer.

Thanks @martin-green - I've been looking at HDPE but I'm seeing very mixed reviews, Butyl and EPDM look more suitable and are thicker but the cost goes way up. Does anyone have any recommendations or thoughts on those liners? Thanks.

I was browsing IG, and I saw these; https://www.instagram.com/p/BY0923ZgkoX/?taken-by=samsaquariumz https://www.instagram.com/p/BYbHDhhgawl/?taken-by=samsaquariumz Was just curious - will something like this hold up over time, like without any water movement, heater, filter pumps etc or is...

Looks amazing, just been looking back through the Journal, great job!

Doesn't like like much but the new wildlife pond is more or less dug in - the container full of water is another, deep ish pond which the frog has already moved into! We're going to plant that up - and the other two containers are going to be bog gardens so we can put it some longer, bog...

Cool, thanks @zozo - I just realised I pasted the recipe in missing a component, it's meant to be; 1 part milled sphagnum moss 1 part fine (ish) charcoal 2 parts fine tree fern fiber - swap with coir 2 parts fine orchid bark 1 part milled peat - apparently you can swap this for eco earth? Do...