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How To Build A Water Garden and Stream-Planning and Design
Install the Pond Shells
Before making any purchases, get copies of the literature
showing the size and shape of the shells your supplier has available. Select a
few models, then use a garden hose to create a rough footprint of where
they’d go and how they’d connect. We settled on the 210-gallon
“Butterfly” pond (about $300) from Atlantic Water Gardens for the
lower pond and the 165-gallon “St. Lawrence” pond with spillway
(about $190) from MacCourt. See Buyer’s Guide (next page) for more information.
Once you’ve obtained your shells, position them, then use a shovel to trench an outline 6 in. larger than the ponds. Remove the shells and dig the hole for the lower pond. You need to create a hole that will support the bottom of the shell as well as the ledges. Lower the shell into the hole frequently to check the depth, shape and position of shell and ledges. Dig the hole about 2 in. deeper than the intended final elevation because the sand base you’ll spread next will raise it back up. Make certain the lip of the shell will be at least 2 in. above the surrounding soil or else dirt and muddy rainwater may flow in.
Next spread and level a 2-in. layer of coarse sand over the bottom of the hole. Set the shell in place and check everything out. Does the sand fully support the bottom? Is the shell level in every direction? Is the lip at least 2 in. above the surrounding soil? Are the edges of any ledges supported? If the answer to all these questions is “yes,” you can start backfilling the pond. stonework around both ponds.
Fill the pond with 2 to 3 in. of water, then check the shell for level again. This is critical; the water in your pond will be level, so if the shell is tilted, the water line will show it! Pack a mixture of half sand and half soil around the base of the pond as you fill it with more water. Be sure to pack sand under the ledges before the water reaches them; they’re flimsy and need support.
Once we had the lower pond back-filled within about 8 in. of the top, we tucked the corrugated hose under the lip of the shell. This hose is used to recirculate water from the pump in the lower pond to the “mouth” at the far end of the upper pond.
Dig the hole for the upper shell, then level it and line it with sand as you did the lower shell. Make sure you have an adequate height difference for your falls and stream. If you’re building on a slope, you may be able to bury the entire upper shell. Our site was flatter, so we used stone, sand and soil to partially build up around the shell.
Build Up the Edges With Stone
You can disguise the lip of your liner with overhanging
plants, stone or a combination of both. We primarily used stacked
flagstone.
Spread a 1- to 2-in. layer of sand around the lower pond, then set a layer of flagstone so the upper surface is level with the lip of the shell. This allows you to cantilever the second layer of “capstones” over the lip of the pond without them weighing directly on the lip.
There’s no exact science to the stonework part of this project. Use the ugliest, most irregular stones for the first support layer, since you won’t see them anyway. Select and install capstones that conform to the shape of the pond edge. We built and rebuilt the stone layers around the bottom pond several times before we found a pattern we liked.
Once you have the lower pond surrounded with stone, build your way up and around the upper pond. Start with a wide stone base around the upper pond. This will allow you to lay a slightly sloped, stable wall as you build up to the lip. Solidly support the ledges of the pond with rock and soil when you reach them. We created a small rock planter that stepped up to the upper pond and helped make a more natural-looking transition.
While you’re doing the stonework around the upper pond, snake the free end of the corrugated hose to the far end of the upper pond. Bury it and cover it within the rocks, but don’t pinch it. Extend the free end of the hose so it discharges into the far end of the upper pond, then secure and disguise the hose with cap rocks.
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