sooo . . . once again, we had the lawn crew remove all of the existing trees and shrubs (well, except for one huge ole crape myrtle in the southeast corner) and started with a clean slate. perry sat down with pencil and graph paper and drew out a blueprint of what was to be.
1blueprint.jpg
and i started killing bermuda grass - that stuff is real tenacious!!!
what was . . . Now IS . . .
2backyard.jpghere's how . . .
early on we had realized that a water feature of sum sort would add a lot of interest, mostly to grow an aquatic garden. so we spent a couple of years gathering information on how to put it all together (since neither one of us had ever built anything like this before). we researched the internet, bought a book of ideas, and watched any program on HGTV remotely related to water features.
when the time came to finally dig in the dirt, the first thing that we did was build a low retaining wall to level out the northeast corner where the greenhouse would be placed. the plan was that as i dug the pond, i would throw the soil behind this retaining wall while perry raked and packed it level.
then we spray painted an outline of the various levels of the pond . . .
3outline.jpg
and took to diggin . . .
4dig.jpg
once we had the base of the pond sculpted to our liking, we then laid four layers of lining . . .
5lining.jpgsince the backyard has a slight grade, it lent itself quite naturally to a short waterfall. knowing that water follows the course of least resistance, creating the upper falls which spills into a shallow basin which overflows into the pond was quite the feat of mechanical engineering. thankfully perry is very mechanically inclined!!! unfortunately i have no pics of actually creating the waterfalls (so you will just have to come see it for yourself). we were very excitedly anxious to grab the garden hose and get some water into the pond, fire up the pump and see what happens . . .
6fill.jpg
hurrah!!! it worked!!! success!!! not bad for seven weekends worth of work!!!
now the enjoyment can begin!!! perry found this real cool aquatic landscape retailer where we acquired a variety of interesting plants . . .
7plants.jpg
this retailer also sells koi but the price was a bit too shocking for our budget. since neither of us had ever taken care of outdoor fish, we decided that the learning curve would be more affordable with just plain ole goldfish from petsmart. our first visit there we were amazed at all the different kinds of goldfish from which to choose.
8fish.jpg
the fish are very entertaining and a whole lot more like pets then we ever thought that they would be. they KNOW when it's feeding time and get to crowding each other all excited like - they're hilarious!!! but mostly it's just real relaxing sitting by the pond, watching the fish swim around and listening to the sound of the waterfalls - the sound is incredible.
the pond has turned into a great big unexpected ongoing science project. while we were up north on vacation this past june, the adult fish decided that it was time to procreate. we now have 7 or 8 little black fish, which will probably turn into orange comets, and 9 little speckled fish, which may be a cross between the comets and shubunkins. so, so cool.
the pond is a fairly decent size - about 900 gallons. we weren't lookin to put in no swimming pool, not even a wading pond. all we really need, especially this time of year, is a pair of shades and ice cold beer and a place to sit somewhere near water.
brad paisley - water
http://www.lyricsmode.com/lyrics/b/brad_paisley/water.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1AHnQtY1bg4
another really great part of the science project is the bullfrogs. they found our pond within the first year and i just absolutely love the sound of their croakin!!! there's usually more than one, sometimes as many as four, at different parts of the backyard and when they get to callin back and forth to each other, they put on quite the concert. they produce 100s of tadpoles in each clutch - probably cuz they have a high mortality rate. the bullfrogs have been very prolific this summer - we're currently watchin the third batch of tadpoles growin. it takes the tadpoles about 3 weeks to mature to the point where they sprout legs and hop out of the pond. when that happens, we have little frogs, about the size of a fly, hopping everywhere. it's amazing!!!
Toadies - I Come From The Water
http://www.lyricsmode.com/lyrics/t/toadies/i_come_from_the_water.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61oerMwQF6g
places to visit - sites to see:
http://scotte-deuw.blogspot.com/2008/06/3-now-this-is-unreal.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cRS8-FFec9Y
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1uTy8tMDJOg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yyBuWouso2Q
