Designing a Backyard Pond: Part 2

When a worm gets cut in half by a garden shovel, does each half heal and grow into a separate worm, or is that just something my Dad told me to stop the crying?

I've always been edgy about the worm thing, so I thought I'd be psychologically tattered one week into helping my friend Andrea create a pond in her backyard. Instead, my excitement dwarfs the anxiety.

Speed in Spades

Our attempt at hand-digging a 22' x 10' pond excavation has gone way faster than expected. The giant hole provided 10 cubic yards of dirt that Andrea has used to add curves, privacy, berms and coziness to her yard. I thought the dig would take at least a week. It took 2 days with help from neighbours and friends.

Our goal is a lovely, reflective pond surrounded by fieldstone, with a pretty sunken patio beside it and a small waterfall to offer the infinitely soothing sound of moving water. The pond will be home to water plants and even mosquito-noshing fish to help reduce local encroachment of West Nile disease.

Here are some tips for your pond project:

Call Before You Dig

Last year, Canadian homeowners paid big money after busting thousands of buried gas pipelines, fibre optic cables, phone lines and water lines. Why? Because they didn't bother to call their utility companies and find out where the lines were buried. In Ontario, it's actually illegal to dig before locating your utility lines. Even a small break in a gas line can cost $300 to repair, while damage to a fibre optic cable runs into tens of thousands of dollars. Motivated? The number to call in Ontario is 1-800-400-2255. Alberta: 1-800-242-3447. BC: 1-800-474-6886. Quebec: 1-800-663-9228. Other provinces require that you call your utility companies directly.

24-Hour Expert Advice

Own a great pond reference manual so you can keep checking with an expert as you go. I highly recommend The Complete Pond Builder (Sterling Publishing Co, 1996) by Helen Nash: a fantastic guide to installing a water feature.

Level and Loving It

Water does one thing really well. It lies flat. There's no convincing it to tip or lean or be a bit deeper at one end. So if the edge of your pond isn't level, your water is going to bluntly inform you. And by then it'll be too late to fix it.

So. Find the lowest spot around the edge of the pond. That is your 'zero point'. Pound stakes every 2 feet around the perimeter of your pond. Level all the stakes (or mark a line on the stakes indicating how far down to dig to reach the level of the 'zero point'.)

Sod Off

Remove sod in strips to make it easy. Then drive in levelling stakes and start the process of making the pond edges match the zero-point.

To discourage racoons, give your pond vertical sides. You may want to create a level shelf approximately 12" below the water surface to hold aquatic plants.

If the soil under the turf is hard clay, it's fairly easy to sculpt and holds its shape well. But it sucks as drainage material. Actually, it doesn't suck enough. Ground water gets trapped between the clay and the liner. So if your pond is in a low spot in your yard, or if you have a high water table, add a layer of sand at least 4 inches deep on the bottom of the pond excavation cavity to allow dispersal of water. This will prevent ground water from collecting and making bulges under the liner.

Supply the Juice

You'll need at least one electrical outlet 3 to 6 feet away from the edge of the pond to run the filter and/or pump. You shouldn't hardwire the pump because you actually have to take it out of the pond in the winter to prevent freezing temperatures from cracking the housing.

Things That Go Pump

The right equipment makes a lovely, low-maintenance pond experience. The wrong equipment will be an expensive headache.

As recently as 10 years ago, Canadians had to use pool and aquarium equipment to create ponds. Their enthusiasm flagged after cleaning fish poop out of sand filters normally used for pool water.

So pond enthusiasts began looking to Europe, where modern pond construction has been an art form for over twenty years. Now companies like OASE, a German state-of-the-art pond equipment manufacturer, supply fantastic pumps, synthetic liners and accessories specifically developed for ponds. They even have a pond vacuum to make the occasional job of cleaning the pond fun and easy.

Vanessa Strand, owner of Water Arts, a pond specialty shop in Etobicoke, Ontario, says that 50% of her clients buy a filter in the second year because they crave really sparkling, clear water. A filter guarantees freedom from green water caused by algae. Plan for the extra expense of a filter and you'll be way happier with your pond.

Determine the size of your liner by allowing 18" of excess on each edge of the pond. Don't forget to account for the depth of the pond.

Choosing a pump comes last depending on how much water you have to pump (Andrea's pond will have 3500 gallons), and how high you're lifting water (to statues, falls or fountains).

Andrea chose the OASE Filtoclear 3000 filter ($1,170) and the OASE Aquamax 3700 pump ($1,100), a non-clogging, ultra low-energy pump with the best warranty on the market.

By the way, I just researched the worm question and the news is not good. Neither half of the worm recovers. But I've found I bisect fewer worms with my shovel if I prepare them with stomping and loud, frantic cries of "SQUIRM AWAY, LITTLE HERMAPHRODITES, SQUIRM AWAY!"

Next week: Liner, pump, plumbing and rocks.