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Aquatic Plants, Planters
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Plants are your filters.
They keep the water clear and clean in your pond. However, not all plants contribute to the work at hand. Some are installed just for appearance.
There are several very important jobs that your plants perform making them indispensable to the ecologically balanced pond.
- Shade the water
- Consume the nutrients in the water.
- Absorb toxic chemicals from the water.
- Feed the fish
- Hide fish from predators.
Not all plants do all things. I have often been asked, "what is the most important plant to have in your pond and why?" I only wish it were that simple.
However, if your funds are limited there are a couple of plants I would put in before anything else.
Anacharis grasses
These grasses are the most popular for underwater use in aquariums, and ponds. Why?
- They are hearty and grow well in a wide range of conditions.
- They provide a good food source for fish.
- They provide a thick mass of plants for baby fish to hide in.
- They consume large quantities of nutrients directly from the water.
- In sunlight, they produce oxygen.
These plants are often known as oxygenators because they do produce oxygen in the sun. But their real benefit is how, and how much, they eat.
Anacharis consumes nutrients directly from the water. I mean it really chows down too. Don't be fooled by the roots, this plant uses its roots just to hang on, nothing else. The plant actually absorbs nutrients through its leaves.
If your pond bottom is covered in anacharis,
you will most assuredly have a crystal clear pond.
Floating Plants
The next most important plant is the floating plant. Water hyacinths and water lettuce are the best. They provide a place for fish to hide from predators, they provide food for fish (usually what is hanging on their roots), and they provide shade for the water below. But the most important characteristic is that they feed directly from water born nutrients through their hanging roots.
So what am I saying here? Buy and grow as much anacharis
and floating plants as you can, especially in the new pond.
Lilies
Lilies are put in ponds primarily for their appearance, but they do have some other benefits. They shade the water as they fan out their leaves and they hide fish from birds above. They also consume a large amount of nutrients from the soil they are planted in. As your pond begins to develop a nice layer of "pond pie", lilies will send out roots to gobble up the nutrients from fish wastes and other decaying plant matter as well.
Bog Plants
There are a gazillion of these. Their primary function in your pond is appearance. Elephant ears, taro, papyrus, cattail, iris, rushes, horse tails ... Take your pick. They do not have a lot to do with your water chemistry but they do provide refuge for pond friends like McRibet the frog.
Plants are the answer to water chemistry.
Plant anacharis and throw in your floating plants.
Then waterscape with your lilies and bog plants to suit.
Planters
Putting plants into your pond at the proper depth is very important. If you have followed my advice on pond design, you have a flat bottom in your pond. See Underwater Design A flat bottom is very important when building and installing plant stands. I advocate building planter boxes out of wood. Sure you can use a wide range of plastic containers for planting, but planting bogs in wooden planters is my choice. You will see these planters in the video and get detailed drawings of how to make them in Ponds Builtbyu. Doesn't wood rot? Sure it will eventually. But wood kept submerged does a pretty good job of holding up. The wood of choice is cypress or fir. Do not use cedar, redwood, or any treated woods as they give off chemicals that are deadly to pond inhabitants.
Bog Plants
A bog planter is best build 16" square and 6" deep. Two reasons for this size. One, it is a common size of lumber, 6" wide. The second reason is that when the box is full of soil and plants, and it is soaking wet, it will challenge you to lift it out of the pond for thinning or replanting. So bigger boxes become impossible to handle.
A secondary function of your bog planter box is to provide a hiding place for fish when the friendly heron is "fishing" in your pond.
A bog planter box should have four legs cut so the top of the box is about 2" below the surface of the pond. This depth will suit almost any bog plant.
Lilies
Lilies are usually planted in tubs, the bigger the better. Again, can you lift the tub out of the pond when it is full of wet soil? Ugh! Strong plastic tubs are good for this. Remember to buy dark colored ones so you can't see the pot when it is installed. Brown or black is best or you can buy cheap non-toxic spray paint and paint the outside (same with your wooden planter boxes).
Also make sure there are lots of holes in the sides of the lily planter as it needs the additional water flow. Many have tried laundry baskets, which have a weave, but they are usually too weak to handle the load.
Anacharis grasses are best planted in small (one gallon/6") black nursery pots. These pots are perfect, cheap to get and they are already black or dark green.
Planting soils and other pointers
Basically there are three different soil mixes for ponds. Some would like to make it more complicated but just try these suggestions first.
Water Lilies
Lilies demand a rich soil with lots of food. Lilies really eat a lot.
- Soil I recommend 4 parts of a good top soil (not potting soil) and 1 part cow manure that is well composted (mixed and cured). "Black Cow" was my "old stand by" brand.
If you have oak leaves, put a 1 inch layer of leaves on the bottom of the pot covering the holes. If you don't have oak leaves, put newspaper in the bottom to cover the holes to keep the dirt in until it sets up.
Mix the soil completely with the composted manure and fill the bottom 1/2 of the pot. Sit the lily plant down on the soil and fan out the roots as much as possible. Put in the remainder of the soil to cover the plant up to the ground line of the plant. Then put in a layer of pea gravel or just plain "sand box" sand the last 1" on top. This top layer of rocks or sand keeps the fish from messing around in the soil and muddying the water.
- Oak Leaves OK, some of you are pounding your fists and stomping on the floor. "Who would ever put oak leaves in your pond intentionally?" Well, I did it for years because I found the acid in the leaves helped stabilize the pH in the water. Since the tendancy for ponds is to go alkaline, oak leaves really do the trick. Trust me!
- Depth If you have purchased a young lily, chances are that it has short leaf stems. Put your tub in the water to a point where the leaves are below the water surface about 3-4". Within a couple of days, the leaves will grow to float on top of the water again. Then lower the tub again, and again, until you get the tub all the way to the bottom of the pond.
How do you support the tub while going through this process? Sit it on other plastic tubs or pots turned upside down, or a box of wood. But don't use cinder blocks as they will upset the pH in your pond.
- Food I used tree fertilizers sold in briquettes (Brands: Wood Ace or Agriform). Put 4-5 of the large briquettes in the soil. Push them down to the root area after the pot is planted. Three months later, or mid summer, give them another round of briquettes. You don't even need to take the pot out of the pond, just lean in there and push the briquettes completed down into the soil. Do not fertilize lilies after August.
There are commercial lily briquettes available from most catalog supply houses as well. Follow the package instructions.
Bog Plants
Bogs are swamp weeds. They usually grow very large root groups to scavenge for food. Two or three bogs per 16" square planter box is sufficient. They will fill it up soon enough. I also call bogs Machete plants because you need a machete to "thin" them as they begin to overrun your whole pond.
- Soil Use just plain top soil, planting with the same technique of lining the bottom of the planter with oak leaves first. Put in the soil and plant the bogs as you would any land based plant. Then cover the top of the planter with sand or pebbles.
- Depth As mentioned before, a bog's ground line needs to be within a couple inches of the surface but below the surface. Your fish will enjoy scavenging for bugs and other plant growth in the shallow water over your planter boxes.
- Food Normally, these plants will not need any ongoing feeding but if they have come to you bare root, it might be best to mix in some slow release granular fertilizer or a couple of the tree briquettes mentioned in the lily section. Just to start, nothing further.
Anacharis
Anacharis does not feed through its roots so putting anything in the soil for food is a wasted effort.
- Soil Put plain sand or pebbles in the grass pots and push the bunches of anacharis right down into the soil until they stay put. Since fish like to eat anacharis, you will frequently find pieces pulled loose and floating around your pond. Replant them whenever you see this.
- Depth Anacharis when first purchased will probably only be 6" long and in bunches. Place the pots about 1' down until the strands begin to reach the surface. Then lower and lower until you have them on the bottom. Note: Anacharis must get good sunlight. I do not recommend placing the pots any deeper than 2.5 feet.
- Replanting Anacharis always reaches for the sun. Therefore, when your planters are on the bottom, cut off any limbs that reach the surface and replant them. You can grow a lot of grass this way.
For a change of looks, let a few strands of Anacharis grow along the surface. They will shoot up little tiny white flowers. A real treat!
"Ribet"
Detailed instructions on building your
new pond are available on this site, click here.