Creating A Wildlife Pond

[ryaldinhio 4,964]

Hi guys,

 

a few months ago we purchased some extra land and now have about half an acre at the back of our house and we would like to dig a wildlife pond for plants, bugs, birds and fish. a month after that we had a 360 in clearing some rubble and brambles on the new bit. while he was there I had him dig a test hole about 4ft deep. after 18ins of top soil we are on clay here. My test hole was holding water from day one and over the last two months has gradually filled with the persistent rain we have had and is now full to the brim so I am taking it that if we excavate the pond and compact the clay that is there is will naturally hold water once full.

 

few questions;

1. has anyone else carried out similar works and how did it go?

2. my understanding of planning laws is that because it is not a change of use, i.e. I am not making it a dayticket fishery or boating lake, it is just a feature of my garden I dont need planning permission. Does anyone have experience in this?

3. when the time comes does anyone want a load of clay free...collection only!!!! haha!

 

Any advice appreciated.

[Casso 1,261]

Not sure about planing or that side of it but for me a wildlife choice was newts frogs bugs or fish,

Fish depending on type will eat like sharks anything, as far as helping wildlife newts and bugs etc give far more back to nature

[neil cooney 10,416]

Fair play to you for doing it. I don't know about Britain but here in Ireland having a body of water ie. a quarry, can affect your insurance big time.

[ryaldinhio 4,964]

Not sure about planing or that side of it but for me a wildlife choice was newts frogs bugs or fish,

Fish depending on type will eat like sharks anything, as far as helping wildlife newts and bugs etc give far more back to nature

I will be planting plenty of reeds, lillies etc so hoping I get newts, frogs dragon flies the whole shabang.

[ryaldinhio 4,964]

Fair play to you for doing it. I don't know about Britain but here in Ireland having a body of water ie. a quarry, can affect your insurance big time.

Its something I have always wanted to do. I had a conversation with mi dad about it over xmas because I can remember telling him when we were fishing and I was about 8 that I was going to have my own little pond one day.

 

Didnt think about insurance but not sure how/why that would be affected? Usually if there is a natural pond it is because you are low on the water table therefore higher chance of flooding possibly???

[neil cooney 10,416]

In this day and age where the environment gets priority over everything else it's hard to believe but I was talking to a farmer recently and when he went to re-new his insurance he was asked had he any open holes of water on his land. He said Yes and was told he needed to fence it off.

He fenced it off, at an expense of 9000, and rang his insurance company back. They said that he'd been given the wrong information and that he has to fill it in completely.

Hard to believe in this green age.

 

I'm raging as this particular quarry holds a few very good earths.

 

Like I say, things might be different in Britain. I hope they are, it's political correctness gone mad, again.

[ryaldinhio 4,964]

In this day and age where the environment gets priority over everything else it's hard to believe but I was talking to a farmer recently and when he went to re-new his insurance he was asked had he any open holes of water on his land. He said Yes and was told he needed to fence it off.

He fenced it off, at an expense of 9000, and rang his insurance company back. They said that he'd been given the wrong information and that he has to fill it in completely.

Hard to believe in this green age.

 

I'm raging as this particular quarry holds a few very good earths.

 

Like I say, things might be different in Britain. I hope they are, it's political correctness gone mad, again.

Im sure environments agency would be over the moon to hear about insurance companies doing this!

[kanny 21,099]

Wouldn't level of the pond always be the same as the water table? . Compacting the clay might slow the water seeping out but it won't stop evaporation ....done a couple of big natural ponds when I was landscaping but they were fed by natural springs.... I would wait and see what it does in summer before committing big Time to it...water table is up to our ears at the moment.

Edited January 4, 2016 by kanny

[ryaldinhio 4,964]

Wouldn't level of the pond always be the same as the water table? . Compacting the clay might slow the water seeping out but it won't stop evaporation ....done a couple of big natural ponds when I was landscaping but they were fed by natural springs.... I would wait and see what it does in summer before committing big Time to it...water table is up to our ears at the moment.

I have been told water table doesnt come into it on clay? if you excavate and compact, old school puddling, then it will hold water. the level the water is at in the test hole definitely isnt water table because my garden is a couple metres higher than the lane so if it were water table the lane would be under water if that makes sense???

[kanny 21,099]

 

Wouldn't level of the pond always be the same as the water table? . Compacting the clay might slow the water seeping out but it won't stop evaporation ....done a couple of big natural ponds when I was landscaping but they were fed by natural springs.... I would wait and see what it does in summer before committing big Time to it...water table is up to our ears at the moment.

I have been told water table doesnt come into it on clay? if you excavate and compact, old school puddling, then it will hold water. the level the water is at in the test hole definitely isnt water table because my garden is a couple metres higher than the lane so if it were water table the lane would be under water if that makes sense???

Well if that's the case go for it ...good to see some giving back Edited January 4, 2016 by kanny

[J Darcy 5,871]

A shallow pond will hold alot more life than a deep pond. And I'd maybe have a serious think about the rushes. Once they take off they are a swine to stop taking over the pond. I'd have Marsh Marigold, and water forget-me-nots in there first for a year before I thought about lilys and rushes. You would be surprised what comes in of its own accord. Also, don't introduce duckweed or it will rapidly take over. Canadian pond weed is a great oxygenator....

 

Oh, and fish and newts aren't a good combo...not from the newts point of view anyway. Even sticklebacks hammer the newt larvae severely....

[BGD 6,437]

Sounds like a cracking wee project, a thread on your progress would be very interesting

 

I wouldn't stock any fish and try and focus on encouraging amphibians and insect life, both are really hammered by modern life and urban sprawl so a wee reserve for them would be grand.

[J Darcy 5,871]

What needs to be remembered about amphibians is that they hibernate on land. So an untidy pile of bricks/debris in a cover acts as a great place for them to go sleepy-byes.... In my own pond I have designed it so that the newts actually hibernate under the brickwork of the pond itself. A hibernaculum is very important as the less distance the newt travels the better as there are less predators to face...JMHO....

[ryaldinhio 4,964]

A shallow pond will hold alot more life than a deep pond. And I'd maybe have a serious think about the rushes. Once they take off they are a swine to stop taking over the pond. I'd have Marsh Marigold, and water forget-me-nots in there first for a year before I thought about lilys and rushes. You would be surprised what comes in of its own accord. Also, don't introduce duckweed or it will rapidly take over. Canadian pond weed is a great oxygenator....

 

Oh, and fish and newts aren't a good combo...not from the newts point of view anyway. Even sticklebacks hammer the newt larvae severely....

I had planned to do an area that was shallow/boggy where fish couldnt get and I was guna do reeds lillies etc on marginal shelves in about 2ft of water then deeper section about 4-6ft to restrict the spread of the reeds/lillies.

 

Im into mi fishing and always had lifelong ambition of having mi own little pond to fish when Im an old boy so there will be some coarse fish going in. But in my opinion these are as much a part if a wildlife pond as the plants, bugs, amphibians, birds etc. I wont be stuffing it with fish the same I wont be stuffin it with plants, just want a nice balance which will hopefully grow on together so by the time I pack work in I have a nice little mature pond full of wildlife etc.

[tillylamp 1,846]

hi, i think its nice, doing what your going to do, my dad has a wild pond also in clay ground, which is well established now, its got nice bull rushes, reeds, hawthorn trees hanging over it, bramble bushes at one end, weed, and long grass hanging over the sides, its about 35 ft x 15 ft, tear shape,its that shape because the land falls to wear the pond sits with a natural gully to the narrow end with a very shallow entry, then it slops down to 3 - 4 ft deep with an island in the middle, theirs all sorts of things living in it, frogs, bugs, slow worms, grass snakes, mice, insects,etc, but no fish, even a few ducks on occasions, but he does get moorhens nesting there nearly every year, and when the young get old enough to venture away from the pond and run around in the field my mum always use to say they looked like little black pom-poms, lol

as someone said, wait until the summer when the water level is at its lowest so you can get the correct depth, my dads drains a bit in the summer to not very deep, but stays moist enough in the drained areas to keep every thing going until the water levels come back, it use to be quite nice to just sit around it and watch every thing doing its thing, peace and quiet, just the way i like it,

 

tilly