We finished the water garden!
It took several encounters with the sump pump and an afternoon of carrying rocks, but it’s finally clean, full, and complete. Another yard project done at last!
Here’s a trip down memory lane with that mess we now can call a water garden.
Before the trees were taken down, and full of leaves -
After the trees were gone, and with an ugly fence to keep Tito out -
Finally had it cleaned out . . .
And then rebuilt and filled it! Ta da!
We bought a new filter and filled the bottom with rocks so that if Tito fell in he could stand (however, we recently learned that he can, in fact, SWIM!). We also removed the heater that Ronni installed so that she could have fish. We are NOT interested in fish. I’m not, anyway. They skeeve me out. And we built up the rocks again so that the pile actually looks purposeful. And, of course, the ducks are back in place.
Now the trick is to keep it clean . . . we bought enzyme tablets that will keep the water clear. And we’ll probably need to put a net over it in the fall and drain it and cover it in the winter so we can fill it with fresh water in the spring. Exciting!
Next project: rototilling and spreading loam and grass seed. And/then: removing aluminum siding, repairing cedar clapboards, painting house. Can we do both this summer/fall? We’ll see . . .





5 comments
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July 12, 2010 at 12:45 pm
Maria Stahl
A suggestion: If you can unskeeve yourself and get goldfish, they will do a lot of the cleaning for you and you won’t need the enzyme tablets. They love to eat mosquito larvae, too. And they’re actually cute, in a slippery sort of way.
Not sure how cold it gets there in winter but as long as the surface never freezes over, they would not need a heater, just keep the pump running to keep the water circulating and aerating.
July 12, 2010 at 3:35 pm
Megan Johnson
hahahahaha “They skeeve me out.”
I understand. I actually did not swim in lakes until i was like 20. The idea of touching fish terrified me.
Looks great! love that tito can swim! i want to kiss his face.
July 20, 2010 at 1:49 am
E.K.
It looks gorgeous! Fish do the same thing to me. Plus, I always feel like those ponds are too small for them or something. My Mom has them and I just want to set them free! : )
July 20, 2010 at 12:16 pm
Elena
Thanks, everyone! And though fish are definitely out for me, we are experiencing some algae growth now and are considering getting some water plants. Any suggestions? EK, I totally agree – fish are slimy AND sad!
January 3, 2011 at 2:23 pm
2010 in review « Project Ranchalow
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