Pond with Goldfish, Lily Pads, & Bull Rushes Here are some pictures of our pond and backyard. Some of these were taken a couple years ago.  (the ones with the lily pads already in bloom).  The last two pictures we just taken over the past couple of days. Have had the waterfall pump and filters running now for about one week now and have just started planting some annual flowers. Still too early in the season to see the perennial flowers, but the Hostas and a few others are starting to come. (looks very bare right now!!!) I originally ‘dug the hole’ in 2000 and I can tell you that was quite a job! The ground in this area is mostly clay and every inch was with a pick and shovel. Since the original design, it has changed slightly over the past couple of years by adding larger stones around the pond and rebuilding the waterfall to hide an Ultra Violet & Biological filter. From the original concept, by laying out the garden hose in a pattern and spray painting around it… to when the water first went in took about 3 weeks. The pond is approx. 16’ X 6’ and around 36” deep. (It’s plenty deep enough for the fish to survive the winter without any problems). If you look in most of the pictures, you can see a small water pump that I keep going all winter to keep the water open… then in the summer, I just attach a fountain head on it… works great. The amazing thing is, this little pump is now 4 years old and runs 365 days a year!! I’ve had to change my main waterfall pump 4 times now in the same time!! There are approx. 80 goldfish in the pond now, with around 5 or 6 babies from last season. There could be a few more babies hiding down deep around the Bull Rushes, but should see them any time now. The Plant Life was ‘acquired’ from a giant natural pond I found just a few miles from my house. After I priced Lily Pads… $25 - $50, I thought there must be a way to obtain them for a much better price. The larger Lily Pads and the Bull Rushes came from the pond mentioned above and some of the smaller pads came from a place up north of here… rolled up my pants and waded out into the water… had to be there… it was a fun time!! I’ve included a few photos from this year… Spring 2012 , May 8th, shows the bare beginnings of the season… and… June 7th, shows things getting underway. Of course, in the next few weeks and into July, everything fills out much nicer. I wish it could stay like that all year long!! When I go on holidays in the summer, people ask if I’m going away… I tell them… “Yep, to an oasis in our own backyard”. Thank you, Mick Bond Ontario, Canada   =========================================== Want to see your pond featured here?  Send us one or two of your best pond pictures and we'll add them to the gallery.  pondpics@macarthurwatergardens.com =========================================== Back to Galleria Index - Click Here