The Pond!!
My pond is the culmination of over 13 years of work!! Well....I wouldn't quite say I worked on it the entire 13 years....but when I did work on it....I did work!! But it was a fun project...and it feels sooooo nice to have finally completed the landscaping!!
I thought I'd start this blog from the beginning and show the evolution of my pond!!
The Vision Began!!
The thought of a pond intrigued me... for I love the sound of the water and I love the way a pond attracts wildlife.......plus I was thinking... I wouldn't need a water bowl for the "kids"!! So for years I kept thinking in the back of my head...where would I want to put a pond?? And after a few years.... I took a liking to this spot!! The pond is to be installed to the left of the two trees in the middle...and that's when the "fun" began!!
The Hole!!
Well, now that I found a spot...the next thing was to dig a hole!! Fortunately a good friend had access to a back hoe and came over to help....and a hole we dug!!
Shaping the Pond....
Now I don't know if I would consider this part fun....for I had to hand dig the shelves on the side of the pond for my future pond plants... and I tell ya.... it's a lot easier when you're watching someone else do this type of work on TV!!!
Beginning of the Waterfalls!!
Man...I tell ya... I don't know where the term "2-man rocks" came from....for Hercules would have pulled a hernia trying to move these things!! They might not look big and heavy in the photos....but those rocks would still be there if it wasn't for the back hoe!! And of course my "expertise" in operating it!!! Hmmm.... might be a "slight" exaggeration on that last remark!! Oh, and I should mention.... this was done in 99...before I "dyed" my hair silver!!! :))
Shaping of the Waterfall!!
Well, I survived moving the boulders around!! My original plan was to build the waterfall from scratch.... laying a liner out and installing the rocks....but getting rocks that are shaped for a waterfall isn't as easy as it sounds... for there weren't as many places supplying that type of stuff back then... and then to my savior....was the Puyallup Fair!! For I met this lady from Idaho who built waterfalls. Now the ones she did were those types that have a tall wall with the waterfalls ....
But I didn't want that type... for I wanted something that would blend in with nature.... for that's how I try to keep the perimeter of my property. So I came up with a tiered waterfall scheme...that would start at the top....then branch into two directions...one heading straight down with a few waterfalls....and the other one sweeping to the right with a series of waterfalls that would reconnect with the other waterfall right before it enters the pond.... and after some negotiation.... (and a kazillion dollars!)... we came up with a design that I do like!! That's why in the photo above you see the foundation for the waterfall tiered....
Now We Go 13 Years Later!!!
The Landscaping Begins!!
Okay...now we fast forward 13 years (my...time sure does fly when having fun!!)... for I'm finally starting to do the landscaping!! Now mind ya... it was working nicely prior....and I still had the sound of the water....and it still attracted the wildlife (one time I came out and there were a couple ducks in it!!!)....and most importantly...it always served as a back up water bowl for the kids!!!
And while the photo above looks like the area around the pond was nice and cleared out..... similar to 13 years ago... it wasn't!!! It took a lot (and I mean a lot!!) of back breaking work ridding blackberries and stuff that accumulated throughout the years!
Now my plan is to have the front part around the waterfall/pond kept up nicely....and then transcend to the natural look as you move outward.... And being that I do like things to be as much maintenance free as possible... I laid out a bunch of that weed barrier mat!!
More broken backs!!
The next thing was laying out the beauty bark....and mind you...even though I have a nice dump trailer which works great for my gardens... you can't quite do that here... so as easily as they loaded the bark into my trailer... I'm shoveling each bit... shovel by shovel!!!
The photo above was taken almost in the same location as the very first photo.... and to me... it's definitely a step in the right direction!! I think it looks kinda cool....plus the great part... less mowing!!! :))
Completed!!!!
The photo above shows not only my completed waterfall/pond...but the landscaping completed!!! It's not intended to be some finely manicured type of landscape... for I achieved what I was going for...and that was for something that would look nice in my front yard...and then transcend to the natural landscape in the background!!
I have planted some new cover crops along the waterfalls that will hopefully set in like the ivy is starting to... I have some minor stuff to do such as extend my water line from the front of the pond along the left side of the waterfall near the top. That way I can setup some soaker hoses for cover crops..... and while I do have some pond plants in there now... I have some more that will arrive this week....hence more photos to this chapter!!
The Waterfall....
This is my intro photo, but I thought it better to describe it here rather then at the beginning. For here you can see a better layout of the waterfall design....The hose will be removed with a hidden water line this week... and as the cover crops start to take off... the waterfall will hopefully look nicely nestled in with the pond.... with a complete natural look....
The Pond!!
You can see some of the pond plants I planted... there's actually more then what's shown in there, but when I landscaped the pond, it rose the level about 4" higher....which is what I really liked!! So I'll adjust the other plants...but they're small at this point with the exception of this one pond grass.... I'm certain I'll be refining the pond plant layout with each passing year... for I'm just now starting to learn about the various pond plants and how to grow them!!
Now I'm finally up to the "true" fun part!! I'm thinking of building (or possibly buying) one of these glider swings so I can relax on these summer days and enjoy the pond!! There will be more photos to follow these...but this isn't too bad of a start!!
