Growing up we had lived next to a small creek and I had spent many delightful hours there, watching the water meander by, listening to it gurgle as it passed over rocky outcroppings. I would fish for creek chub with a bent pin and pieces of white bread rolled into small balls.
Once we moved into this home, I was at peace watching the fish, loved listening to the toads trill in the spring time as they came to mate, and was fascinated by the tadpoles that grew into young toadlets and emerged from the water.
Aside from all of the work that the ponds required, there was another problem after the first chunk of Manitoba maple came down in a windstorm a few years previously. Formerly, that part of the tree had provided not only shade for the ponds, but protection for the fish.
The first season afterwards, when I had tried to reintroduce the goldfish, starting with one to make sure the water was right, a passing heron had made him his breakfast.
We often see herons flying overhead journeying to and from the river. I suppose that in previous years the tree had shielded the ponds from their view. Without that natural cover, the water and movement of the fish likely caught a heron's eye.
My husband woke that next morning to discover that the goldfish was gone and a great blue heron was strutting around our back yard. It seemed pointless to put any of the others out, turning them into a heron buffet. Without the fish, the idea of the ponds lost some its lustre.
I had reconciled myself to the idea that there would be no more water feature, and no more fish. I was okay with that...more or less.
Then when I was searching for gardening ideas on pinterest (my favourite internet idea site!) I came across instructions for container ponds. Small, easy to maintain, it seemed an ideal compromise. I could put one up on the tree stump so that it would not pose a safety hazard when our new grandson reaches the toddler stage.
I really liked the idea of using a galvanized tub. I thought it would be ideal for the informal, country cottage garden that I was striving to create. At a town wide yard sale a couple of weekends ago, I came across a good sized tub for only $2, an incredible deal for this hard to find item.
There was a small crack at the top, and it looked a bit rusty, and I wondered whether it would be leak proof. But for $2 I had to have it, and knew that I could use it elsewhere if it proved to be unsuitable for a small pond. As it turned out, it did have a small leak. I considered having my husband patch it, but then decided to use it as a planter instead and to continue the search for another to use as my container pond.
I used one of the stumps left over from the removal of our dying Manitoba maple as a base for the planter. I added some old bricks and a couple of rocks that I found in our side yard as drainage. Two bags of black earth ($2 a bag) were enough to fill the planter.
Since the spot I chose is mostly shady, I thought it would be a good idea to use some of the shade plants that I already have growing beneath and around our remaining tree, a large basswood. I dug up a clump of hosta, some oleandar, and a couple of pieces of beacon's silver. I added a small branch for texture and interest.
I had seen ideas on pinterest to hang a tea pot above a planter so that it appeared to be watering the plants. I had a copper tea pot sitting on my kitchen shelf that I thought would be perfect, and I liked the idea of the mix of metals.
I bought a small egg shaped sun catcher at a yard sale for twenty five cents and wanted to add it to the planter but wasn't sure how to do it. My unused side yard proved once again to have just the thing I needed. I have no idea what its original purpose was, but I found a galvanized metal bar that I stuck into the planter that was just the right height to hang the sun catcher from.
For a total of $6.25 I was able to create this pretty little spot along the patio fence near the rock garden. (You can click on photos to see an enlarged image).
I was pleased with my planter, but still wanted a container pond. I had seen an add on kijiji, our local on line buy and sell site, for a galvanized tub, no holes or leaks, for $45. I had considered it, it was in line with what these tubs usually went for, but it was more than I wanted to pay and I decided to wait to see what else I could find.
A few days later the seller had dropped the price to $25 and wanted a sale that weekend. I emailed and offered $20. She was firm at $25, and figuring that was a fair price...and wanting one 'now'...I agreed. Especially since she guaranteed that it was water tight. There is another listed now by someone else with an asking price of $40.
I like how it looks sitting on the stump, and love the idea of having a container pond.
This is what the stump looked like the day the tree came down, after we had cleared away the wood and sawdust.
And this is what it looks like now.
I had a small wood and glass washboard that had been sitting on a shelf in my laundry area. I thought it would look cuter as an accompaniment to the wash basin. Of course, it had been a garage sale find one year.
Previously, I had added some rocks, a cast iron lantern, a resin rabbit, a clump of perennial day lily, some purple salvia and dusty miller annuals to the area below. There had been a fern growing into my lawn area that I dug up and relocated to the barrel planter. It suffered some transplant shock, and I had to cut off a few dead leaves, but there is new growth already.
A couple of weekends ago, at the previously mentioned town wide yard sales, I had purchased a concrete squirrel for fifty cents. I set it on the stump next to the tub. I felt that something was still missing. I remembered the robin's nest in one of my bushes out front. The fledglings had vacated the nest, and the robins had already built a new one above the drain spout, so I didn't feel badly about taking it.
I wasn't sure what kind of plants to put in my container pond. I have not finished researching that yet, but I was impatient and wanted to get a few fish. The local pet store had small pond goldfish for fifty cents a piece, and they also had water hyacinths for $6.99.
I picked up one plant and three fish, two orange ones and a brown one. I followed the recommendations for introducing the fish to their new home. I let the bag float in the water for half an hour, then opened it, emptied half the water and added some pond water. I let them sit again for twenty minutes, then released them.
Sadly, the brown fish didn't make it, but the two orange ones seem to be doing well. Eventually, a self-contained ecosystem should develop, but for now I am feeding the goldfish flaked food. Although I notice they do nibble on the roots of the water hyacinth as well.
I have named the one with a white spot on its back Sorbet, and the other Julius.
They seem quite content in their new home and are very active, chasing one another around. The water hyacinth has already gotten some new growth in just a few days.
By this weekend I should be ready to add a couple of other plants. I also want to get one more goldfish, a slightly larger one. I do not want to overcrowd it with fish though. And since it is not large or deep enough to allow them to remain outside during our long, cold winter, I will have to bring them inside in the late fall and set up an aquarium for them. Something else to be on the look out for at garage sales this season!
My little container pond helps to alleviate some of my wistfulness at losing my big ponds. I know that ultimately this is a much better choice for our current lifestyle. And already it has brought me pleasure. I can even stand indoors by the back door and look out onto it.
If you have a small space, or limited time and ability to care for a larger pond, I recommend giving some consideration to a container pond. It's easy to do, and as you can see, can even be created on a frugal budget!
Nifty, thrifty and (over) fifty,
Cathy
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