Harrowsmith – June 2019

Harrowsmith Summer 2019 | 15

GARDENING

Afull-blownpondora half-
barrel-sizecontainerfullof
waterandplantswilldomoreto
createbiodiversitythana swath
ofpetuniasora rowofgorgeous
cedars,neatlytrimmedand
manicured.Thinkofitthisway:
Howlongcanyousurvivewithout
water?Dittothewildlifethatwould
lovetoliveatyourplace.
Sure,thesongbirdsloveyourbird
feederandmayoccasionallysplash
inyourbirdbath,butthereismore
toattractinggoodthingstoyour
garden.Manyspeciesmakeuseof
smallwateringholes.Frogs,toads,
salamandersanddragonfliescan
thriveina surprisinglysmallbody
ofwater.
Herearesometipstohelpyou
developyourownplanfora water
featurethatisenvironmentally
beneficial.

• Watershouldbeatleast
  80 cm(311/2inches)deep.
  Ifyouwishtooverwinterfish
  andfrogs,itshouldbeatleasta
  metreanda half(fivefeet)deep
  intheTorontoarea;deeperif
  youliveupnorth,wherewinter
  temperaturesfallfurther.


• Anatural-bottompondwill
  attracta widerrangeofwildlife
  intheearlyyearsthana

plastic-linedpondwill,butover

timea pondlinercanaccumulate

enoughorganicmatteratitsbase

thatit,too,willattracta variety

ofwildlife.

• Waterthatmoves,likea
  fountainorwaterfall,will
  eliminatethepotentialfor
  mosquitobreeding,iseasier
  tokeepclearandattracts
  morewildlife.


• Yourpondshouldbelocated
  ina partiallyshadedplace,if
  possible.Nomorethanfourhours
  ofsunlighta dayisideal;morewill
  encouragealgaegrowth.


• Toattractwildlife,yourpond
  shouldhaveslopingsidesto
  makeiteasyforanimalstoenter
  andexit(butnottoograduala
  slopeorraccoonswillscoopup
  yourfish).


• Avarietyofdepthsinyour
  pondwillallowa greater
  diversityofcrittersmaking
  theirhomethere.Birdsand
  tadpolesmigratetotheshallow
  areas,whilefrogs,toads,newts,
  salamandersandturtleslike
  deeperoptions.


• Perennialsshouldbeplanted
  aroundtheperimeterofyour
  pond.Astheymatureover
  theyears,theywillprovide

protectionforthemany

amphibiansthatmovearound

thewater’sedge.

• Annualfloatingplantsshould
  beusedintheearlyyearsof
  yourpondtoprovideshadeand
  protectionforpondlife.Asthe
  plantsandtreesmaturearound
  yourpond(andyougetcloserto
  achievingtherequiredshadeon
  thesurfaceofyourpond),you
  caneliminatetheuseoffloating
  annualslikeduckweedand
  floatinghyacinths.


• Ifyoufillyourpondwith
  chlorinated(city)water,it
  shouldsitforatleasta week
  beforeyouplacefishinit.When
  yourefillyourpond,itisbestto
  userainwaterfroma rainbarrel.


• Wildlifethatmakeyourpond
  theirhomeshouldnotbemoved,
  andplantsorwildlifefromthe
  wildshouldnotbeimportedto
  yourpond.Thecritterswillfind
  itassureaslionsandzebrasfind
  thewateringholeintheSerengeti
  Plain,andplantsarebest
  acquiredfroma reliableretailer.


• Waterplantscanhelpkeepthe
  watercleanandoxygenated,
  andotherswillattract
  pollinators,especiallythe
  plantsthatflowerthroughout
  t hesu m mer.


• Thewaterdepthmustbe
  consideredcarefullyforplant
  placement.Marginalplants
  performbestatthewater’sedge,
  whilenativeliliesenjoya depthof
  about 60 to 80 cm(24to 31 inches).


• Native plants (nursery grown)
  are more likely to attract
  native critters.

If one of your goals in designing your garden is to

attract desirable wildlife that is environmentally

beneficial to your yard and neighbourhood, this

should interest you: a water feature is the most

beneficial addition to your yard and garden that

you can possibly make.