Creating Natural Ponds Helps The Environment

A natural pond is a hive of activity. All sorts of animals such frogs, pond skaters, dragonflies, turtles, even the odd fox will pay a visit. These ponds are very important for the conservation of wildlife, animal and plant. As these wild oasis disappear, and they are going at a very fast rate, the plants and animals disappear too. Animals travel to man made watering holes that may be dangerous for them.

Because the animals have to come closer to human kind for their water they are stumbling onto chemical dumps or drainage and sewage runoff ditches. Because these animals are getting foreign poisonous substances in their bodies by drinking from these places, the species are slowly diminishing. This does not even count the thousands of species that are buried alive when it is decided it is cheaper to fill a pond in rather than build a bridge over it for the new freeway.

Pond keepers have discovered that this shortage has increased the amount of wildlife that visit their ponds and many have adapted old ponds or built new ones to mimic a natural pond to encourage the wildlife even more. These mini eco systems have proved a hit not only with the wildlife but with the pond keepers as well. They provide lots of interest and bring tranquility to a garden.

Design And Maintenance

Natural ponds should be as large as you can possibly make them but no matter what size, they are still very valuable to wildlife. There should be a good mixture of both shade and light and the sides should have gently sloping shelves to provide different depths. Natural ponds should be irregular in shape and look as if they have been there since time began. Your pond liner should be protected with two layers of sand, put one layer in the hole before laying the liner and then another layer on top of the liner. Water straight from the tap can be used to fill your natural pond. Plants will quickly start to fill your pond so you should remove any excess weeds, leaving about 70% of the pond clear.

You wil have to clean the pond occasionally by removing weeds, unwanted plants and any leaves that have found there way in. Don't do any weeding in the first few months of the year as this is breeding time for invertebrates and amphibians and there eggs will be on the weeds. Its good practice when removing plants and leaves to leave them by the pond for a while so that any small pond life that you have inadvertently plucked from home can make their way back to sanctuary.

The plants you use in natural ponds should be local to your habitat. This will ensure new growth and eliminate your frustration if everything you plant is dying. The important thing is to try and make your pond look and act as natural as possible. Don't add fountains, ornamental statuary or other man made objects to your pond or the naturalness will be removed. Many animals would be frightened off by these small structures sticking up in the middle of a pond. Being eco-friendly and environmentally responsible will help you maintain a beautiful and wonderful natural pond that will attract wildlife to your garden in abundance.

Article Source: http://www.articlemonk.com

Kipp Flynn has been designing ponds for ever. He was using terms like environmental way before they were fashionable. Click to discover more about natural ponds or here for general build a pond advice
Click here for other unique ponds articles.

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