Post by rowanberry on Sept 20, 2019 20:08:28 GMT
We're spending the next few days dredging the pond. 
It's a job I hate, but needs must. I've decided I need to make some major changes, because I do NOT want to be doing this every three or four years, which is what it seems to require. It's not very big, and a hard-shell with shelves.
It's a job I hate, but needs must. I've decided I need to make some major changes, because I do NOT want to be doing this every three or four years, which is what it seems to require. It's not very big, and a hard-shell with shelves.The pond baskets with soil in them are going. Even if I line them, the liners rot over time and the dirt leaches out. There must be a good four inches of silt in the bottom of the pond, and the frogs kept it constantly churned up this year. The apple tree leaning over the pond didn't help, (it was either shedding petals, apples, or leaves straight into the water, depending upon the season.) It fell over back in the spring and has been propped up ever since... I wanted to give it one last season to flower and fruit, but it was dying... it was cut down today. 
I was too enthusiastic with pond plants, (novice mistake!) and at one point I had at least seven different kinds in there. They were always competing for space, and they make it really difficult to sieve out the duckweed. From now on, it's hornwort and water cress. I can simply toss a bagful of cress from the supermarket into the (empty) pond baskets and it flourishes. Then I can simply lift it out when it gets overgrown. I love the Mare's tail, but every time it rained it flopped over and just made a mess. It needs a MUCH bigger pond, (as does the fringed water lily.)
The poor frogs are not happy with me... they're sitting on the emerging shelves looking very peevish, but I'm sure they'll be happier once it's done and they've got room to actually move about. I'm going to sink some pond baskets full of rocks and hornwort for them to hybernate in, and maybe a few submerged shelters made from a couple of broken paving slabs.
We've syphoned out most of the water today, but tomorrow the real fun starts... hauling out buckets full of muck. Not looking forward to it, but I shall post photos of a lovely clean pond in a couple of days, (provided I don't fall in head-first and dislocate something!) I've got to try and catch the infant newts, too... that should be interesting.
Still, it looks great. If we get another heatwave next Summer, I might be tempted to toss the frogs out and use it myself. 
She does love frog-hunting. 
