[David]

Hi folks this is my watergarden im currently building.Its been a real struggle,im 24 and still learning,i dug this pond all by hand,which was a nightmare,i started in the summer of 2004.
The deisign i came up with is to have a deck looking out onto the water. a waterfall will start off with a stone cave at the top,from here the water will leave the cave and run down through a few mini pools and flow into the main pond.
I plan on building a little small tea house in the top corner beside the waterfall ,looking down on everything,and which will act as a main focal point to the design.I will be using a lot of rocks and plants to give it a really natural look.
I am just about to start dressing the pond with stone and peashingle at present.I lined the construction with a special rotproof underlay and then used butyl rubber as the pond liner,on top of this i placed an extra layer of underlay and scrap liner over the butyl to protect it from the stones.

[verge]

Wow, thats a massive project. It looks really professional with the terraced cascades and the shelved pond. I look forward to following gyour progress.

[James Kilkelly, was GPI.]

I am really impressed with the construction of your water garden so far, David.
Everything seems to be shaping up nicely.
I notice as well that you have some of the stone now onsite for your feature.
It would be great if at some stage you could document a step by step guide to the construction of your water feature.
Items such as how to prepare the ground, where to source materials and pitfalls you came across.
If all this was displayed on IG it would help encourage and inform many members in the ways of the water feature.
Keep up the good work.

[MargeSimpson]

That's impressive, really impressive!

I spent several months digging my new build garden so I kinda know how hard it is to face a digging project. But that is great work. I'd love to see more piccies as time goes on.
You must have building experience or are you a novice builder?

[David]

Thank you very much,i started out a complete novice into the unknown,i thought myself basically and got lots of advice from experts,books,its a mad adventure a daunting one at times.I quit a number of times throughout,as it was becoming to much but as im doing this for my parents who dont keep well im determined to succeed..

[Chris_IE]

Wow! Having dug a Very small pond by hand, I can appreciate what back breaking labour went into your project. It looks amazing and I look forward to seeing the end product. Good Luck!

[foamcutter]

David,

just flicking through some old posts and came across your "water garden". It was very impressive when you posted in October ............... I was curious to see how it turned out if that is'nt too cheeky.

Cheers

Fran

[Rockworld]

David, any update on your pond. It looks very impresive so far.

[David]

Okay its been a while,heres a glimpse of the waterfall,not fully complete but you get a clear idea,The water emerges from a stone cave i built and cascades down over the rocks in the mini pools into the pond.I have a deck built looking out onto the pond and a teahouse built aswell.At the present moment the water is drained out of the pond,as i have to start putting my plants in.
The rocks i used were weathered and had coverings of moss which gave the look an instant natural effect.My aim was to have every waterfall differant,differant patterns of flow,curtain falls and tumbling falls,split falls,it looks more convincing ,i still have to build the bridge to go over the falls.
I used a special product from america waterfall expanding foam to waterproof beneath the spill stones,and around it to guide the flow and prevent any sideways seepage.I used a variety of rock sizes large and small.To appreciate my waterfall you really have to see it in person you know,there is an art and a feel to it,as i have learned and taught myself.
The grotto i built out of reinforced steel which had to be bended into an arch and concreted into the header pool,i then built the stone around the arch and back,and from there i plastered the inside with a few layers of lime enriched mortar to help it stick,the final layer i then stuck random size beach pebbles into the final layer of plaster in degrees,tthe whole inside i have done in beach pebbles it was painstaking but it worked very well
The pond as you see is drained out ,at present which you dont see here,i have all the liner disguised completely on the inside,when finished not a speck of liner will be seen,the pea shingle ive used will act as a natural biological filter and the oxygenators floaters,lillies and marginals will all play their part too in the process,i dont aim to have any fish i just want it to be a natural wildlife pond,i would love to get ducks
around the pond i aim to plant a lot of grasses since they require not that much maintainace,and some bamboos and sedges.
I will post more when i get more completed which should be very soon.
This project im doing for my parents,and i just wish a designer out there could see my work and talent and nurture my talents on to bigger and better things,beacuse so far i have been let down by a lot of people in life.

[David]

[cooler]

Absolutely beautiful work David. You and your parents should be rightly proud of the water feature. I cannot wait to see it in all its finished glory plus planting. These pictures are an inspiration to those of us still to create our own water garden.

[Tom]

David thats super work. Loads of interest from the different waterfall types. Stick at it as you will get noticed.

[David]

Thanks lads very much really appreciate your comments,i drove down to clonmel today to get the oxygenators,cant seem to get them anywhere local,the variety i choose where elodea crispa also known as canadian pond weed,i only got about 6 bunches as they are quiet vigourous.im looking into the waterlillies aswell.I got a big 1 tonne bag of beach pebbles delivered today so i will use them for around the edges of the pond and the beach area,the pebbles really do the business,they are expensive but worth it,if you are after that really natural look

[BlackBird]

[David]