Garden Railways – August 2019

GardenRailways.com 21

Paul Smith

Lincoln, Maine, Zone 5

Use glue, not mortar

I bought the skimmer (Atlantic ps4000)

and liner from pondliner.com. The pump was on

sale at Home Depot. It pumped at a higher velocity than needed,

so I installed a ball valve to control the flow. I was advised to use

PondBuilder™ PondBuild ‘N Foam, Black Waterfall Foam instead of

mortar to prevent frost heaves and leaks from cracked mortar.

Overlapping the waterfall liner onto the pond liner has been a solid

decision. I’ve had no problems with leakage at the junction.

What tricks can you share

about integrating water into

your railway?

Stan and Deb Ames
Chelmsford, Massachusetts, Zone 6

Shaded ponds
SJR&P passes over a wooden bridge across a meandering
stream, linking our two shaded ponds. We used pond liners,
which provide more flexibility for planting and rock place-
ment. Our bog portion of the upper pond is full of moisture-
loving astilbes and yellow sweet-flag iris, which wave above on
sunny days reflected in the ponds. Hostas, maidenhair ferns
(Adiantum pedatum, Zones 3-9) and lady ferns (Athyrium filix-
femina, Zones 3-9) fill out the lower area. The star-like sweet
woodruff (Galium adoratum) hangs beyond the shore near the
floating hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes, Zones 9-11), invasive in
warm climates, here treated as an annual.

Richard and Leslie Mynderup
Reedley California, Zone 10

Pretty potted plants
Departing from the town of Little Paddocks, passengers are
greeted by the Tallulah Ridge, rising up above. Peeking over the
top, Cousin Itt (Acacia cognate ‘Cousin Itt’, Zones 9-11) always
brings a smile to the passengers. Japanese maples (Acer palma-
tum, Zones 6-9) are bonsai’d to create a softening edge in con-
trast to the rough rock. The potted Big Twister dwarf curly rush
(Juncus effusus ‘Big Twister’, Zones 4-10) adds to the appeal of
the pond. A volunteer Queen Anne’s lace (Daucus carota, Zones
3-9) greets the water before it gently pours over the spill rock
into the lower pond. Potted plants, like the citronella geranium
(Pelargonium citrosum, Zones 9-11) can be used to hide electri-
cal outlets, while discouraging mosquitoes.

REGIONAL GARDENING REPORTS

Zones are USDA Hardiness Zones

MORE REGIONAL IDEAS

Find an extended version of Regional Reports at

GardenRailways.com/Fall2019

RESOURCES

■ (^) Miniature Garden Guidebook by Nancy Norris, KalmbachHobbyStore.com
■ (^) GardenRailways.com: Subscribers enter keyword “water” for
25 water stories.
■ (^) Make stronger scale retaining walls, Aug. 2012
■ (^) Building wet or dry streams, Feb. 2010
■ (^) How to build a pondless waterfall, Dec. 2009
■ (^) Aquatics have wet feet.” Extensive plant list, all zones, Aug. 2008
Sta
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Lighting under
the Japanese maple
illuminates the
waterfall and is a
beautiful scene in
the evenings.