Even on small area you can equip a pretty decent artificial reservoir, while sacrificing only a few beds. It will be inexpensive. In order to create a pond in the country with your own hands, you only need geotextiles, PVC film or polyethylene and a few days of free time.

Choosing a place for an artificial reservoir

When choosing a place for a pond, it is of great importance illumination... Since aquatic plants require enough sunlight, it shouldn't be too shaded. But too much overheating of the water is also undesirable, as this can lead to blooming of the surface.

The most suitable site for placing an artificial reservoir is a place near the fence in the corner of the garden, which is illuminated in morning time but is in partial shade at noon. Avoid placing the pond near large trees: overgrowing roots can damage the pit cover. Yes, and during the fall of leaves, you will have to clean the reservoir of leaves almost every day.

It is better to place an artificial reservoir in partial shade.

Pit preparation

The size of an artificial reservoir can be any - it all depends on the owner's desire and free space Location on. But it should be borne in mind that too large a pond will require more maintenance.

1. With the help of hammered stakes and a rope, markings are made in the shape of the pond at the selected place.

2. Sod is removed along the perimeter of the marking.

3. A small pit can be dug with an ordinary shovel. So that the walls of the pit do not crumble, its walls must have slight slope... There is no need to make the artificial reservoir too deep. Minimum depth bowls - 60 cm (plus 30-40 cm for filling the drainage from rubble and sand).

4. If it is planned to launch fish into the pond, its depth should be lower the level of soil freezing in this climatic region. Otherwise, the water at the bottom will freeze and the fish will die. In the central part of Russia, the soil freezes to a depth of about 1.4-1.5 m.

5. For planting aquatic plants, it is better if the edges of the pit are stepped... The size of each of these steps is 10-15 cm.

Stepped pond pit

6. All large stones and branches are removed from the bottom of the pit, which can damage the not too strong film.

7. At the bottom of the pit is filled drainage: crushed stone, and then sand, each with a layer of 20 cm and compacted.

8. To protect against soil erosion, an interlayer of geotextile... It can be replaced with any durable fabric: old carpets, blankets, old oilcloth or roofing felt. Laying of such a protective layer is carried out with an overlap of about 50 cm on the edges of the pit.

Laying roofing material

9. Further on the bottom of the reservoir you can lay plastic wrap(its shelf life is about 3 years), PVC film(it will last longer, about 15 years) or durable butyl rubber... So that the film is not damaged during filling with water, it must be laid without tension.

A film is laid on the bottom of the pit

10. Cut off excess geotextiles and films immediately. The required form they will accept only after filling the pond with water. It is better to dig around the perimeter of the pit shallow trench, in which you can lay the edges of the fabric and film and lightly cover it with earth.

11. After filling the artificial reservoir with water, stones are laid along its edges, which will not only hold the material covering the bottom of the pond, but also serve as a decoration. The edges of such an artificial reservoir can be decorate and decorative tiles, slate, sandstone or other suitable stones or bricks.

Stones are laid along the edges of the reservoir

12. The area adjacent to the reservoir can be covered with gravel or marble chips.

Pond edge decoration

13. In the center or at the edge of the pond, you can install a small artificial the fountain.

14. Along the edges of the reservoir, you can install several small lamps solar powered.

Advice. If there is too little space on the site, a small artificial reservoir can be made from an old wheel or bathtub, buried in the ground and trimmed with stones along the edge (see photo).

A small artificial reservoir made of old bath

A pond from an old wheel

Pond cleaning

To clean a large reservoir, you can use the simplest filtration system: a small pumping station with a sand filter. Two pipes are drawn into the pond: one serves to take water, from the second the purified water will again flow into the pool. Additional purification can be provided by a small stream filled with sand, through which filtered water will pass before returning to the pool. It can drain into a pond through a small waterfall.

Pond filter

It is enough to clean a small body of water only once a season by hand. To do this, completely pump out water from it using a submersible pump and remove accumulated dirt from the bottom. To clean the pond, you can also use a special vacuum cleaner equipped with a filter with which you can collect dirt from the bottom.

Vacuum cleaner for cleaning the pond

Advice. If you put a vessel filled with charcoal at the bottom of the pond, the water in it will not bloom for a long time.

Fallen leaves can be collected from the surface of the pond using a landing net. In autumn, during heavy leaf fall, the reservoir can be covered with a special net. To avoid getting dirt on winter period the pond is covered with any covering material.

Advice... To prevent the film from cracking in frost, it is better not to drain the water for the winter. To compensate for the pressure created by the expansion of the ice, several wooden planks or plastic bottles filled with water.

Planting aquatic plants

Aquatic plants serve not only original decoration pond. Swamp, hornwort, elodea and other plants that can saturate the reservoir with oxygen will help protect the water surface from greening.

Naturally, only those plants should be planted that can develop well in a given climatic region. To decorate the pond, you can use traditional plants: reeds, sedges, reeds. Large plants (lilies, water lilies) will be able to cover the water surface from the bright scorching sun and reduce the heating of the water. TO flowering plants Those who prefer to settle near water bodies include arrowhead, kupena, plakun-grass, fern, bergamot, lungwort, water iris, etc.

Advice. For planting plants, you can use special containers that are placed along the bottom of the pit. In this case, it will be much easier to care for the plants.

Planting aquatic plants

Video: Do-it-yourself pond in the country

Beautiful body of water on garden plot many summer residents dream of building. However, not everyone can boast of a large area of ​​land, trying in vain to place a vegetable garden, fruit trees, and several flower beds with their favorite flowers on it. In addition, the construction of a pond is associated with significant costs that not everyone can afford.

A small charming pond is not difficult to build yourself

Several options for a small pond

Our photos show various options for artificial reservoirs in summer cottages. Among them, you can find budgetary ones and you can choose one of the simplest to perform. In addition, the choice of option should be determined by the composition of the soil, as well as the availability of free space in the garden or yard. A mini pond is easy to build with your own hands, if you have the appropriate building materials at hand. Available materials can serve as the main argument in the search for a solution.

Film pond - a universal solution

To prevent water from leaving the homemade pond, it must be sealed. In a good way use of film is considered. If you want to save money, you can use the leftovers plastic film, which was purchased for greenhouses, but such a reservoir will last only a few years.

If it is possible to purchase a film based on butyl rubber, which is designed specifically for the construction of reservoirs, the life of the pond will increase significantly. A compromise option is a dense polyvinyl chloride film.

It so happens that the remnants of the film are scattered pieces - in this case, they can be glued together to obtain a coating the right size... For this, it is advisable to use special glue, with which you can also glue cuts and other material defects.

A film pond allows you to build a pond of any shape and size

In addition to the main material, you will need sand, geotextile and stones. To arrange a reservoir with your own hands, you should act according to the plan:

1. Mark a place for the pond. You should not arrange it right in the garden next to fruit trees... It is advisable to choose a flat surface so that the levels of the banks are the same height - otherwise water from the pond will pour out from one side.
2. Dig a pit, making sure that its walls are flat, which will allow the banks not to crumble during operation. The angle of inclination of the pit walls should be up to 45˚. If there is a desire, the banks can be made with ledges.
3. Next, you need to carefully tamp the bottom of the pit, and then fill it with sand to a height of 5 - 10 cm. Lay a piece of geofabric on the sand; some craftsmen replace it with old blankets.
4. Now the reservoir can be lined with foil. This should be done slowly, trying to immediately straighten the emerging folds. Lay the edges of the cover on the banks.
5. It is necessary to pour water into the reservoir in parts, this will not allow the coating to burst. It is recommended to take a two-hour break between each stage.
6. Once again we check the level of the banks and, if necessary, level it by adding earth. We fix the waterproofing along the entire coast with stones.

Important: it is best to work with film in summer, on a hot day. This will make it easier to manipulate the material as it will be softer.

A small pond from a plastic bowl under protection

Plastic bowl - quick and easy

If you do not want to work with film, work on the device of a small pond can be accelerated. For this it is worth picking up finished bowl made of PVC. These containers are sold in hardware stores and can vary in shape and size. In addition, plastic earbuds differ markedly in price and quality. Poor-quality plastic quickly collapses under the influence of frost and ultraviolet radiation sun. The choice is yours. Below are instructions for installing a reservoir with your own hands:

1. First you need to mark the place for the pit. To do this, drive pegs around the perimeter (corners) and tie them with a rope. Make the markings over the size of the bowl of 20 cm on all sides. Dig a pit with a depth equal to the height of the bowl plus 20cm.
2. Now you need to fill the bottom of the pit with sand, achieving a flat surface - this can be checked using a level. Moisten the sand and tamp. Next, put the bowl into the pit, trying to make its edges level with the ground.
3. When the bowl is installed, it is necessary to fill up the sand between its side parts and the walls of the pit (in the same stock of 20 cm). The sand should be filled up and tamped lightly as the bowl is filled with water. This will avoid deformation of the tank walls.
4. Pour water into the bowl not immediately, but in small portions. Sudden stress on the plastic can lead to distortion and damage.

A small pond is easiest to make from a plastic bowl.

Concrete pit - a reliable option

The method of constructing an artificial reservoir from concrete is suitable for those who know how to work with concrete. Such a pond has an undoubted advantage over its brethren - it is reliable and durable. However, it will not work to move it to another place, in this regard, before starting work, it is worthwhile to think over its configuration well and choose the most suitable place on the site. Let's consider in detail how to build a concrete pond with your own hands:

1. The pit under the reservoir should be made with ledges. Let its walls be gentle, here it is also important to adhere to an angle of up to 45˚. The hole needs to be tamped well.
2. Next, you need to fill in the sand, but its layer should be small - 3 cm is enough. On top of the sand, you need to lay out a film of polyethylene or polyvinyl chloride, which should not be tightly pulled.
3. It is necessary to lay concrete, starting from the walls, and only then go to the bottom. It is important to complete this work within one day in order to avoid cracking of the concrete at its joints.
4. Next, you need to wait until the composition hardens slightly, and then press the metal mesh into it to reinforce the concrete. This must be done so that the edges of the mesh protrude above the surface of the reservoir.
5. After the concrete has completely dried, it is necessary to fill in the next layer. Before starting work on the second layer, sprinkle the bottom concrete with water. Experts recommend at this moment to control the bottom surface for its horizontal position.

Once upper layer concrete dries completely, you can pour water into the pool. After that, start decorating it - planting plants on the banks, launching fish or equipping the backlight.

Miniature pond plus scrap materials

Budgetary options for creating reservoirs in the country involve the use of all kinds of scrap materials, instead of buying a bowl or film. Some craftsmen build a pond from an old cast iron or baby bath, while others have been able to adapt a car tire or an old basin. The pond will turn out to be quite small, but it is not difficult to take care of the mini pond. It is easier to change the water than in a large tank, and with the help of tubed plants and decorative stones, it can be easily turned into a blooming oasis.

Preparing a pit for a pond from a bath

After many years of use, the bathtub loses its original appearance. If there are no through holes in the bowl, it may well be used in the country under a homemade reservoir. To build a small pond without great expense, you must:

1. First you need to mark the place under the reservoir, and then add 10 centimeters on each side. Dig a pit, the depth of which will be 20 cm greater than the height of the bath.
2. Now you need to mark at the bottom of the pit the place where the bowl drain will be located. There it is necessary to dig a hole with a diameter of 30 cm and a depth of half a meter. This will be the drainage. In the cylindrical hole, you need to insert a sheet of metal rolled into a roll and fill it with rubble. The edge of the metal should protrude 15-25 cm above the pit.
3. After preparing the drainage, you need to make a "pillow" for the bath, which will allow it not to sink over time. To do this, a layer of crushed stone is poured onto the bottom of the pit, and a layer of sand is poured on top. This pillow should be about 20cm high. All this must be carefully tamped, after which the sheet of metal must be removed.

With the correct installation of the bath, the pond will last long years

Pit for a two-level pond

If you decide to build a pond from an old bathtub, you can make it quite unusual. We propose to create a two-level reservoir with your own hands, for the device of which you will need to make a little more effort. Work plan, step by step:

1. Before digging a pit for a bath, you need to mark the area, adding half a meter on each side. The outer outline should be slightly modified - to make this line wavy, giving it a contour that resembles the natural outlines of a lake.
2. Now you can start digging a pit. To do this, you need to dig a hole, 30-40 cm deep, focusing on the outer contours. Further, at the bottom of the dug pit, it is necessary to mark the contour for the bath and deepen the pit under the bowl as described above. That is, the total depth of the pit will be more than in the first version by the same 30-40 cm.
3. When the bath is installed, the outer contour of the reservoir should be limited by fiberglass slate. A corrugated hose must be put on the edge of the slate.
4. Further, the place that has formed between the bathroom and the slate must be covered with sand and tamped, or filled with concrete.
5. The bowl must be covered with foil, forming a single pool for water. The film should be secured with stones.

It is more difficult to make a two-level pond, but no one will guess that a bath is used in the pond.

Installing the bath

After preparing the place for the bath, bricks should be laid at the bottom of the pit - several pieces in each corner, on which the bath is installed. This precaution will prevent the bulky container from sinking. Next, you should check how even the bathtub is installed, and make sure that its edge is level with the ground. An empty space remains between the walls of the bath and the pit. It must be covered with sand, which must be moistened and thoroughly tamped.

Mini pond from a car tire

If it is possible to use old tire, you can easily and quickly build a miniature pond from a tire with your own hands. A tire from a KAMAZ wheel or a tractor will make it possible to make the reservoir much larger.

First, you need to dig a pit of such a size that the tire fits freely into it. Before installing it in the pit, it is necessary to cut off the upper part of the rubber with a knife. You should end up with a bowl with a hole at the bottom. Next, you need to take the film, cover the bottom and sides of the tire with it, releasing the edges up. They need to be tucked over the edges of the tank. It remains to pour water into the finished pool from the tire and decorate its edges with plants and stones. Similarly, you can build a pond from a plastic basin.

Tire pond does not take up much space and will be an excellent garden decoration

Several ways to decorate a pond

Today there are many ways to decorate a mini pond. Among them, the installation of plaster figures on its banks, the laying of decorative stones and tiles. Any body of water will be decorated with green spaces that can be placed around it right in the flowerpots. In other cases, soil is poured on the shores of the lake, interspersed with stones. Moisture-loving perennials are planted in the ground, which over time form beautiful thickets on the shore.

A small waterfall and beautiful lilies will decorate and revitalize the reservoir

If there is a desire to land aquatic plants, you need to strive to ensure that they do not grow too much. Otherwise, the surface of the pond will be completely covered with greenery. As such, experts recommend using water hyacinth.

Also, the pond can be decorated with a bridge, and lanterns can be installed around it. Another way to revive the water of an artificial pond is a fountain or waterfall. All this can be built later, the main thing is to take into account the possibility of modernizing the pond even at the stage of choosing a place under the reservoir.

"Water is the beauty of nature", S. T. Aksakov.
Take a look at fig. It's good when a dacha or a manor house is in such a place! And if not? We will build it ourselves, a homemade pond in the country is a difficult task, but feasible without special equipment, complex tools and subtle skills.

The bottom row of pictures is self-dug and self-designed ponds, which can be squeezed into a completely mastered 6 acres. And tell yourself honestly: do you now want to freshen up with something futuristic and technogenic, like in fig. right below? Even if you can afford to order this in the middle of the Karakum desert, and bring water there from the Irtysh? No? Then to the point. Building a pond will require some knowledge of hydraulic engineering and aquaculture, but this is what this article is for to give it to budding hydraulic builders.

A pond itself, or a natural pond, is a hydraulic structure, where the water mass in a small non-navigable reservoir is held by an embankment dam without a sluice. The shutter is made in seasonal fish breeding, drained for the winter, and irrigation ponds, and a spillway when there is an excess of water supply. A natural pond receives food either from natural sources of water (a spring, a spring), or during its construction, an adjacent aquifer is opened, artificially creating a discharge zone for it, but most often the dam is deaf.

Note: “Completely natural” ponds, when a dam is formed, say, as a result of a collapse or landslide, are usually called dam lakes.

An artificial pond in the non-professional but widely accepted view is a dug pool without groundwater supply, not intended for bathing, water supply and / or commercial economic use. So it is customary to distinguish it from, although during the construction of an artificial "pond" nothing is dammed, and there is no dam at all.

Most often, an artificial pond is a reservoir in a small country house, up to 30-40 cubic meters. m, volume for decorative purposes. However, as we will see later, a pond with a bathing area can be built on a plot of 18-20 acres. Its banks can be any: gently sloping, embanked, trimmed with stone, but the vegetation frame is necessary, the bed is almost always planted with plants. Often the pond is stocked with ornamental fish species.

What to expect?

A dam pond (a tautology, but let's say for brevity), per unit volume of water mass and area of ​​a water surface, is the least laborious and costly. Over time, it fits into the landscape so much that not every hydraulic builder will immediately distinguish it from a natural reservoir, see again Fig. above. The biocenosis of a natural pond can develop by itself and exist for centuries. Its construction is possible in a natural deepening of the soil with low permeability of the mainland, i.e. lying under the fertile layer of the breed.

To make a pond with your own hands, so to speak, in a natural way, you need to fill in a dam and, possibly, open up an aquifer. Two not lazy and strong workers cope with a dam over the summer, capable of holding up to 1000 or more cubic meters of water. They begin to fill the pond in autumn, so that less evaporation, winter precipitation and spring melt water accelerate soil colmatation, see below.

However, firstly, there are no plots suitable for the construction of a pond and free from other types of economic use. Secondly, a natural pond with insufficient groundwater supply, i.e. with topping up with precipitation, it must have a volume of at least 300-400 cubic meters, otherwise the area of ​​the water table and bed will be excessive in relation to the volume of water, and over the summer the pond can dry up even in the Leningrad region. Third, fresh water is a valuable and increasingly scarce resource. According to experts, in the near future, it is water reserves, not energy carriers, that will become a determining factor in the nature of interstate relations. As for ideas, "values", etc., this is, excuse me, a verbal husk from primitive times. Talleyrand put it well on this score: "The language was given to the diplomat in order to hide his thoughts." Therefore, water use all over the world is regulated more and more stringently, and it is unrealistic to approve the project of a natural pond (without which a very severe responsibility is provided) for an individual today.

Stages of a long journey

A decorative pond is created in several large stages:

• Hydraulic engineering - construction of a reservoir and its filling;
• Aquaculture: settlement and gardening of the pond;
• Construction and decoration - arrangement of all own hydropark: pergola, benches, tables, rock garden, barbecue by the pond, etc.
• Additional: stream, cascade, waterfall, fountain.

The sequence of work is just that, because It is possible to harmoniously fit into the landscape a pond in the garden on your own, without an expensive construction, design project, and the work of specialists is possible only alive with an established biocenosis. This article deals mainly with the first 2 stages: the immense embrace is possible, but not in one publication. Let us highlight only individual circumstances closely related to the "wet" stages, which must be taken into account in advance.

First, there are 2 ways of finishing the shore: dry, before filling, and after it. The first one is simpler and cheaper, because does not require expensive materials and complex technologies. However, you need to have a developed artistic taste and clearly imagine in advance how a filled pond will look in a ready-made hydro recreation zone. Otherwise, the finishing of the coast may run counter to the prevailing landscape design, and it is impossible to fix the masonry or tile finishing going into the water.

Alternatively, you can leave the banks unformed for the time being, embanking them or bringing up the side of the bowl or fixing the upper slope upwards by 5-10 cm; in case of foil insulation, see below. The shaft or the edge of the board is covered with insulation, and its "wing" of 0.5-1 m is given to the sides, which is sprinkled with earth. For examples of such an execution, see several fig. Further. Then the finishing of the coast can be done last, but the bare slope will be visible through the water.

The best option for finishing the coast is the original, dry, wild stone decoration, it fits into any landscape design in the overwhelming majority of cases. But be careful: do not trim the underwater part with flagstone! On land, it is quite appropriate, if only because it is convenient and safe to walk on it, but a pond such as, on the left in the figure, will not build a frosty winter. The fact is that any natural flagstone is not very strong, porous and fractured. Over the summer, he will fill up with water to capacity and frost destruction in the cold is inevitable. And in warm regions, due to the rather high chemical activity of shale rocks, in a few years the lining will crumble, and the biocenosis in such a pond will not develop.

It is best to trim the coast with granite boulders (on the right in the figure) or crushed flaky stone, in the form of relatively thin plates with a relatively flat surface, it is also cheaper than a rounded stone. In addition to granite, any dense brecciated volcanic or intrusive rocks will be used: gneiss, gabbro, labradorite. Tuffs, limestones, sandstones and metamorphic rocks (marble, quartzite, for example) should be avoided: in water they erode, crumble or dissolve.

Filter or leak?

The pond on the site is most often dug. What to do with the pit? Let's see more in more detail; while you need to know that there are 2 options: with and without infiltration into the ground, "deaf". In the latter case, the bed of the reservoir is covered with waterproofing or water is poured into the finished bowl. How to build one and the other, we will consider in more detail later.

A deaf (more precisely, with exclusively evaporative water loss) pond is good because the minimum volume is possible, literally from 5-10 liters, and can be placed indoors. But the biocenosis existing for an indefinitely long time without outside interference will not develop in it due to the accumulation of soluble waste products in the water of the population of the reservoir, primarily humic acids. Therefore, a deaf pond (in fact, an aquarium dug into the ground) must be regularly cleaned and periodically completely reconstructed, with emptying and the creation of a new biocenosis. Without additional devices cleaning is necessary once a week-season (the smaller the volume, the more often), and the reconstruction is necessary once every 1-5 years.

If the volume of the pond is more than 2-3 cubic meters, then the interval between cleanings can be increased to 1-5 years, and between reconstructions up to 10-25 years, using a filter for the pond, see fig. on right. Aquarium submersible filters clean reservoirs up to about 500 liters and up to 0.8 m deep. A pond filter is not at all like an aquarium filter:

1. Surface collector 1 collects debris from the surface.
2. Deep water intake 2 sucks in organic suspension.
3. The one and the other - with replaceable cartridges rough cleaning that need to be periodically removed, washed or replaced.
4. Coast station deep cleaning 3 - a set of reverse osmosis membrane filters and circulation pump- cleans water from soluble impurities.

Note: using skimmer filters for swimming pools in a decorative pond is not allowed! They will not cleanse the water properly, they will destroy the plants and will soon fail themselves.

What is colmatage?

Deep cleaning station equipment is not cheap and very energy-consuming. The latter makes its use problematic in country pond, unless powered by solar battery... But even then it needs a powerful large area, reliable and durable, i.e. expensive. In this case, you should consider the option of a colmatage pond: there is a slight filtration into the ground in it, carrying away soluble waste. A properly arranged colmatage pond is able to exist only on sediments without being topped up from the outside.

Colmatage, or colmatation, is the process of self-compaction of soil in an aquatic environment. During clogging, its small particles fill the pores between the large ones, as a result of which the permeability of the soil and water loss for infiltration decrease. Clogging differs from siltation in that the pores of the soil are clogged with its own particles, and not with foreign suspension. At the same time, the soil is not liquefied and weakened, but compacted and strengthened. The ability of the underlying soil to clog is the most important factor that determines the possibility of constructing a pond with a dam. The colmatage pond has all the properties of the natural: it is viable for an indefinitely long time, and by itself fits into the landscape.

For forced colmatage on any soils (we will not talk about clogging by microexplosions, etc.), the reservoir bed is prepared as a layered one from a colmatator (a source of filling particles) and 1-5 layers of a colmatant that perceives them. The scheme and structure of the clogging bed of the reservoir are designed according to the data of on-site surveys. For example, on the left in fig. - half-section diagram of one of the options for a colmatage pond on light silty sandy loam, this is one of the most difficult cases... From here, if we estimate in size, it is clear that a "normal" colmatage pond cannot have a volume of less than 150-200 cubic meters, otherwise it will dry out before colmatation ends, for the same reasons as a natural one.

Note: pay attention to the profiles of the layers. They are calculated so as to avoid the appearance of a concentrated underground runoff, which can cause a very dangerous soil suffusion.

And when will the colmatage end? When will it be possible to equip the pond? When the water loss will go mainly for evaporation. This is judged by the rate of fall of the water level, for which, according to the initial filling of the pond, measurements are made every day at the same time. After the measurement, water is immediately added at the calculated edge to restore pressure at depth. It's just that it is difficult to understand something based on the measurements. the drop in water level depends on weather conditions and precipitation, the blue broken line on the right in Fig. Then, using the least squares method, an averaging curve is built (thicker green), from which you can immediately see everything. It is no longer necessary to know the mathematical statistics for this, there are computer programs for such cases, incl. online.

At the dacha or at the farmstead, an ordinary colmatage pond will not fit, especially when you consider that the required volume of excavation is more than twice the volume of the water mass. Nevertheless, for a small decorative pond there is a solution that allows to reduce its volume by 30-70 times, to do with cleaning once a season and reconstruction every 5-15 years. How so? A pond pit (see below) is made from an old bath or, with a volume of water up to 2-3 cubic meters, from a plastic container, see fig.:

Place a bathtub with plugged holes on sand pillow 15-25 cm in geotextile. The slope of the pit is made abruptly, at 90 degrees, and reinforced with a non-rotting and non-corrosive sheet material; the gap between it and the bathtub is tightly clogged with fatter clay (preferably with a plasticity number of 15, if measured accurately). In the same way (sand 10-15 cm - clay 7-10 cm - slope fasteners) other terraces are built. Pockets for the substrate of plants in them, see below, are already formed on a clay pad. The bath is filled by one third or half with the substrate for deep-sea plants.

The fact is that the intensity of infiltration in a clogged pond strongly depends on the water pressure, i.e. from the depth. In this case, in the deepest part of it, it is suppressed. Silt will drain into the pit, but it will not damage the rhizomes of nymphs and lotus during the season. Cleaning a small colmatage pond of this type is also not difficult: sludge from the terraces is carefully raked with a soft scraper on a pole into a pit, and from it is removed with an airlift pump. Airlift for cleaning a pond can also be made with your own hands from a low-power compressor and pieces of plastic pipes. But apply submersible pumps any types are not allowed, and they themselves will deteriorate, and the plants will be damaged!

Note: adding water to a small colmatage pond is required, but in a small amount, at the latitude of Rostov-on-Don over the summer, about 0.15 cubic meters per cubic meter of water mass. To the north of the Moscow region, such a pond lives on precipitation in the usual summer.

No infiltration

The smallest colmatage pond is possible with a volume of about 3 cubic meters. m. With a depth of about 1.2 m, its dimensions in terms of plan will be, taking into account the profile of the bed, somewhere from 3x4 m. It is not always possible to carve out a place for it next to the house, and the labor intensity of the colmatage ponds is high, and the formation of a biocenosis in them in 1 season does not fit in any way. Therefore, the majority of ornamental aquaculture enthusiasts prefer non-infiltration ponds with plastic insulation. Ponds in concrete bowls are a thing of the past: they are no better than plastic ones, but much more expensive, more complicated and more difficult to work with.

In a bowl or in a film?

The plastic pond, as mentioned above, is poured into a finished bowl or bed lined with waterproofing. Ponds in bowls are more expensive: the price is good, for 20 or more years, bowls fluctuate between 3,500-20,000 rubles. per cubic meter of capacity, depending on its volume and the region of the Russian Federation. In addition, pond bowls over 10 cubic meters are rare on sale, because not transportable by ordinary transport. However, bowl ponds have a number of valuable advantages:

• Any, up to negative slopes, slope angles of the terraces are allowed, which makes the pond compact (see the figure on the right), and the water loss from it for evaporation is minimal.
• Sliding slopes is excluded, which gives all the possibilities of containerized, easy-to-care, aquatic plant culture.
• Building a pond in a bowl takes a minimum of time and effort.
• It is also easy to care for the pond, especially when planting plants in containers: it is enough, about nothing especially, as they say, without bothering to choose silt with an airlift.
• It is possible to build a mini-pond, because bowls are sold in volumes from 120-150 liters.
• Unwanted infiltration during operation is excluded, therefore, the pond can often be located on the site as you like and even built indoors.

How to build a pond in the thicket, let's look at the next. section, but for now let's dwell on film, they are inexpensive and not so bad at all. The device of the pond in the film is shown in Fig. below. It usually has 4 zones:

1. Coastal A - decorative, with moisture-loving land plants;
2. Shallow water B, with decorative emergent plants, i.e. aquatic plants that develop normally only protruding above the water;
3. Deep B - decorative plants with floating leaves, winter-hardy and antagonistic to deep-sea ones, are planted in it. They generally do not require deep water. But the main purpose of this zone is to plant assimilator and oxygenator plants, i.e. converting soluble waste products of the inhabitants of the pond into insoluble sludge and emitting oxygen into the water;
4. Winter pit G; it is also needed in a pond without fish, this is the kingdom of pond queens - nymphs and lotus. Their culture is possible in middle latitudes, see below, about plants, but on condition that the rhizome does not freeze. Therefore, the depth of the wintering pit is the standard freezing depth in a given area + 0.5-0.7 m.

Note: Note that the plant substrate pockets are formed by the reverse slopes of the terrace shelves. You cannot lay them out of stones, the terraces will slide! For the same reason, container plant culture is difficult - the shelves have to be made 2-2.5 times wider than the "flowerpots", which makes the pond "spread out" to the sides.

So why is a film pond good, apart from being cheap? The most important thing is naturalness: nothing technogenic in it sticks out in plain sight. Then:

• The container culture is convenient for the owners, but it is not ideal for the plants: the roots have nowhere to grow. Nymphs in small, up to 2 cubic meters. m, a pond, they take root well and bloom only on free soil.
• The shape of the pond is not tied to the configuration of the bowl: it can be built even with a curling snake.
• It is not difficult to design the banks dry, while it is impossible to reliably fix the stones on the slope of the plastic bowl.
• Also, further arrangement is made without problems: a stream, a waterfall, etc. With a bowl, if you do not take it right away with the corresponding branch pipes-communications (very expensive), then you will not end up fussing.

The film pond is not devoid of disadvantages:

1. Slopes are not steeper than 45 degrees, otherwise they will slide. This requires more land area, correspondingly more earthwork and more frequent top-ups due to increased evaporation.
2. The insulating film can damage the roots of plants, resulting in unwanted infiltration. "Healing wounds" is possible, but difficult and troublesome.
3. Care is difficult: poking the airlift at random can destroy valuable plants. Therefore, they clean the film pond from a walkway or from an inflatable boat, looking for the bottom through a box with a glass (acrylic) bottom.
4. To extract a plant that is diseased or unnecessary, without waiting for the reconstruction and drainage of the pond, you have to dive behind it or make a special tool to extract it from the surface, which does not guarantee neighboring plants from damage.

A miniature, but very nice pond, only without a deep-sea zone and without nymphs, is obtained by combining a bowl with a film. The bowl in this case is free, made of an unusable tire. How to build one, we'll see when we get to the mini-ponds.

What about fish?

Ornamental ponds are stocked with species specially bred for viewing from above: colored koi and orfoy golden ide, see fig. Goldfish do not survive in amateur ponds: although they come from the unpretentious goldfish, they have completely softened in culture over the millennia.

A colmatage pond of about 50 cubic meters and with a wintering pit of at least 1.8 m depth is suitable for stocking without additional equipment. You can even grow carp, carp and mirror carp in it for your table. A fish pond without infiltration into the ground should be equipped with a deep cleaning station. In this case, its volume is from 1 cubic meter. m for 12-15 tails, that is, heads, the depth of the wintering pit is the same, and the area of ​​the water surface is from 0.2 sq. m per head. The area of ​​the pit in a fish pond is about 20% of the area of ​​its mirror.

The fish pond is not densely planted with plants: they do not emit at night and in bad weather, but consume oxygen, the fish may suffocate. So it is better not to plant oxygenators at all (they all grow intensively), but to arrange a purge of water from a powerful aquarium compressor with a spray. This is also good because in winter there will be a hole in the place where the bubbles emerge, but then the air tube must be insulated so that the frozen condensate does not block it.

Note: in the aquarium, the problem with oxygenators is solved by lighting and periodic thinning. But to create the same light intensity in a pond, kilowatts of electrical power will be needed, and caring for it is orders of magnitude more difficult.

It is also undesirable to plant emergents: their stems and leaf stalks are the natural habitat of the terrible enemies of fish fry - dragonfly larvae. But in a fishless pond, dragonflies are appropriate: they soar beautifully over the water and eat midges, and their larvae, when fishless, eat tadpoles. However, we will talk more about the self-settlers in the ponds.

We build in plastic

First you need to choose the material according to the expected life of the pond and the cash available. Please note that the pond bowl cannot be replaced: the foundation pit will have to be rebuilt under the new bowl, which is very difficult and time-consuming. For the construction of ponds in plastic, the following materials are used, in order of increasing durability, resistance and price:

• Polyethylene (PE) - the film lasts 1-3 years, solid, i.e. bowl, 3-7 years old. In the light, under the action of humic acids, the mass becomes brittle, the bowl cracks and leaks. Recommended only as films for seasonal small ponds. Good semi-permeability: metabolic products dissolved in water gradually go into the ground, which simplifies pond maintenance.
• Reinforced polyvinyl chloride (PVC) - 5-7 years in any form. In prolonged frost it becomes brittle and ice or heaving soil breaks the bowl. Recommended for regions with consistently positive winters and a standard freezing depth of up to 0.9 m.
• Polyisopropylene (PP) - 10-15 years old, frost-resistant.
• Butyl rubber (BC) - 15-20 years. It is produced only in sheets (mats), because this material is soft. Absolutely impenetrable, but easily damaged by plant roots, and rots in water saturated with organic matter. Recommended as an elastic underlay for PVC or PP foil (two-layer insulation). Indispensable in ponds with steep slopes, where it is impossible to fill in a sand damper.
• Cyanoacrylate (acrylic, CA) - 25-40 years. Hard material, available only in solid (bowls).
• Fiberglass composites (SP) - over 30, up to 50 and more years. Also, only bowls due to rigidity.
• CFRP composites (carbon, UP) - over 70 years. Hard, only bowls. It is very expensive, but durable and light: a bowl of 70-100 cubes is moved and tipped together without mechanisms. Afraid of shock and concentrated loads, because the walls of the bowl are very thin.

Bowl

Building a pond in a bowl does not require any special skill. First, setting the bowl in place on the ground, a contour is plumbed from the edge of its side. It is not necessary to turn the bowl over and mark the contour along the board, as is sometimes recommended. Symmetrical bowls are on sale as an exception, and then what to do with the pit in a mirror image? Is that to find this advisor and deal with him in your own way. By all means being in the legislative field, but what else.

The pit is dug with a margin of about 0.5 m to the sides for backfill. For terraces and pits, they take on it the same depth of 15-20 cm. You can not adhere to the profile of the bowl, the sand will compensate. At the end of the digging, a sand cushion is poured onto the bottom of the pit and the shelves of the terraces. Backfilling with excavated soil, which can also be found in the recommendations, is not necessary: ​​frosty heaving of soil in winter can break the bowl. It is better to put the land on a hill, in a greenhouse, in a vegetable garden, etc.

Next, the bedding is rammed and the bowl is placed in the pit, pos. 1 in fig. Check the elevation of the board above the ground, if necessary, correct it with a bedding, removing the bowl. Having achieved the desired elevation in the middle, they set the edges along the horizon in the same way, pos. 2.

Filling, pos. 3, is produced along the levels of the bowl in parallel with the side filling. First of all, water is poured into the pit, sand is poured on the side to its level and the filling is poured from a hose with a spray bottle. The next day they fill up the sand (yesterday's will sit down), water it again. On ordinary soils, this is enough, then pour the bowl to the next level, pour it in the same order, and so on to the top. It is impossible to simplify the technology: residual stresses will remain in the bowl, from which it will surely crack in winter. The settlement of the pond and the finishing of the banks are being completed, pos. 4.

Film

It is cheaper to build a film pond, but more difficult. This is done step by step like this:

1. Mark the contour on the ground and process it, with a strip of about 25 cm, with organic binder for the soil, pos. 1 in fig. There is no need to spend money on expensive silicone binder: the bitumen emulsion used by road workers will do. For clays with a plasticity number of 12-17 (very heavy and fatty) and unconsolidated coarse soils (construction waste, etc.), you will have to fork out for urea-formaldehyde resin (UFR), but it is still several times cheaper than silicone. Strengthening of the soil is carried out in a stable warm dry weather, because it is effective only when soil moisture does not exceed (20-30)% of the moisture yield threshold;
2. They wait 2-5 days, at a temperature of 25-15 degrees, respectively, until the binder saturates the soil and grabs;
3. Roughly, with a margin for removing the profile, they dig a pit. At the same time, it is unacceptable to violate, or at least cling with a shovel (bucket) to the strengthened wedge of soil!
4. The profile is removed by acting with a "plow" pick-up shovel, i.e. without loosening the soil, pos. 2. The contour of each underlying step is strengthened before its digging with exposure, as in claim 1. Don't touch the reinforced wedges!
5. If the bank is supposed to be embanked, then it is made with excavated soil from the most dense and plastic layer. Before the embankment, the humus outside the contour is removed by the width of the shaft + 0.5 m;
6. The bed is covered with BK mats, and on top - with PP or PVC film, pos. 3. It is more expensive than the usually recommended 1-layer insulation, but will give the pond a life of at least 30 years and, when combined with reinforcement, will allow slopes of up to 75 degrees. Mats are laid with an overlap of 15-25 cm;
7. If the film is not rolled, but with panels, then the panels are laid along the mats with a half-width offset so that the seam does not fall on the seam. The wings of both layers on the ground - from 1 m. The overlap of the panels is also 15-25 cm;
8. Carefully straighten and smooth the folds of the film, following in a circle from the pit to the bank, pos. 4, and allow isolation to be diligent from 3 days. Without adherence, when pouring, the film will creep over the rubber, and all the insulation will go down the drain;
9. Fill in by levels. In this case, the insulation will "go", pos. 5, it must be immediately straightened and, before filling the next level, let it be diligent;
10. decorate and green the pond.

And swim?

Yes, in the heat I really want to. It is intolerable if the pond is nearby. But, alas, it is impossible to climb into a decorative pond: a single wash of grease from the body can irreparably disrupt the biological balance in it. It is still possible to build a bathing and decorative pond, see fig. on the right, connecting the pool with baths for plants with channels no deeper than 0.3 m. But then, firstly, you will have to abandon the varietal nymphs. Secondly, you need to arrange a powerful pillow that can hold a lot of water in the bathing compartment, which, by the way, can also be one-piece plastic. And most importantly, the distance from water supply sources and buildings, both our own and neighboring ones, will have to be driven into sanitary standards, so a plot of 20 acres or more is needed.

Plants

Here, according to the plan, it was supposed to start about mini-ponds, but that very bio-equilibrium in them is so delicate and fragile that it is impossible to give intelligible information about "small ponds" without information about pond plants. Therefore, we had to intervene in construction with aquaculture.

The choice of plants for ponds on sale is extensive, but for a start it is better to limit ourselves to the aborigines from local water bodies: they are free and hardy, and well-groomed in appearance compete with rare exotics. The substrate, also for a start, is loam with an admixture of rubble. We will leave complex mixtures for incredible rarities for later. It is put into the pockets of terraces or containers, and the plants are planted, or containers with them are placed, before filling the next stage, when the dregs from the previous filling settle. It is best, of course, to plant in a completely flooded and settled pond. The containers are then placed relatively simply, with hooked poles or otherwise on top. However, to land in the ground in a pond, you will have to dive with at least a mask and a snorkel. And above all, plants from natural reservoirs must be disinfected.

Treatment

Wild plants are washed before planting, remove visible foreign particles, dead leaves, rotten roots, and bathed (at least the underwater part) in a 0.2% solution of pharmacy methylene blue, i.e. a bottle of 20 ml per 10 liters of water. Processing lasts 5 days, and every day the solution must be changed to fresh. Plants are bathed in glassware or a trough covered with a solid piece of waterproofing: enamel and plastic turn blue from blue, and contact of the solution with metals is unacceptable. You need to work in latex gloves and old clothes: the skin from blue also turns blue for a long time, like that of a restless ghost, and its stains on the fabric are not washed off.

Coastal

For a shaded shore, plants are needed that can withstand waterlogging of the soil with a lack of illumination and low temperatures. From ordinary garden ones, a hosta is suitable here, pos. 1 in Fig., Available in many forms with different colors of flowers and variegated, and their wild - large forest ferns: bracken, pos. 2, leaflet, etc. On the open shore, you can plant any moisture-loving plants: irises, anemones, woodlands, etc. In the sun itself, cattail, or kuga, pos. 3. Although it is a marsh, it is not an emergent: its above-ground part develops well at any humidity of the air, as long as the earth is damp. Above-water part of real emergents needs air humidity from 80%; then they can grow out of water in thoroughly wet earth.

Emergents

The emergent plants are planted in shallow water. Arrowhead looks good from the “savages” in the pond, it gives underwater, floating and emergent leaves. V Middle Lane you can find 2 of its types, differing in the shape of air leaves, pos. 4 and 5.

The arrowhead develops well and overwinters at a depth of no more than 0.5 m. For a larger one, up to 0.8 m, an alisma or chastukha is suitable. Habitually, it looks like an arrowhead, but its emergent leaves are ovoid-oval, pos. 6, and less decorative.

Oxygenators

With wild oxygenators in the pond, I must say, a problem. The most oxygen is provided by the Canadian elodea, or lagarosiphon, pos. 7; thermophilic aquarium curly elodea will not survive in the pond. But Elodea is extremely aggressive, for which it was called the water plague: its lashes in a short time fill the entire volume of water, suppressing life in the pond, and they themselves silted up, turn brown and look simply disgusting.

Not so aggressive hornwort, or water herringbone, pos. 8. He usually does not go beyond his terrace. But, unfortunately, it gets dirty and loses its appearance faster than elodea.

Of the readily available oxygenators for the pond, the ordinary vallisneria is most suitable (again, not the aquarium spiral sissy), pos. 9. Its leaves are up to 1 m long and spread beautifully in the water. On the flow, the picture turns out to be fascinating, just look at the beginning of A. Tarkovsky's film "Solaris" based on the novel by S. Lem. Vallisneria multiplies quickly, like all oxygenators, but keeps in dense clumps, the bushes in which are connected by horizontal shoots - stolons. Therefore, its thinning does not cause great difficulties; however, this is already on the topic of pond care.

Note: if a pond with a stream, plant Vallisneria in it. There she is best, and the pond will always be clean and saturated with oxygen. Wild Vallisneria is not afraid of freezing, hibernates with dormant buds.

Nymphs

An exquisite decoration of any pond is plants from the nymphaean family, or simply nymphea. The most accessible of them is a yellow capsule, which is often incorrectly called a water lily, pos. 10. Its rhizomes with characteristic marks from the previous leaves, pos. 11, can often be found along river banks after floods. They are quite viable; generally the egg-capsule is unpretentious.

Amphibious plant capsule: it can grow at a depth of up to 3 m, and outside water in moist soil with an air humidity of 70%. With other nymphs, the egg capsule is an antagonist, and its floating leaves can tighten the entire mirror of water. In general, an option as a last resort, especially since the flowers are not very effective in comparison with other nymphs.

Real water lilies, they are also water lilies, form the genus of nymphea, which gave the name to the entire family and order. Savages in the Russian Federation grow a pure white water lily, pos. 12 and, in some places in the Far East, a giant water lily, with large, up to 17 cm, and more brightly colored flowers, pos. 13. Don't confuse it with the giant tropical nymphae victorias!

South of Krasnodar and south-west of Stavropol on the plains, an open culture of the lotus water lily, or Nile lotus, pos. 14. By crossing mainly these 3 species (there are others), a lot of garden forms water lilies with huge, like those of magnolias, flowers of the most bizarre colors, see eg. pos. 14a.

The planting material for natural and hybrid water lilies is widely commercially available. One of the most important conditions for the success of their culture is correct fit especially in containers. How to properly prepare for planting and plant nymphs in containers, see eg. video:

Video: division and planting of nymphs

An open culture of the true nut-bearing lotus is also possible up to the Moscow region, pos. 15. It is native to Southeast Asia, but naturally grows in the Russian Federation in the Volga delta. The Russian lotus has fully adapted to the warm-temperate climate, but, like water lilies, is picky about the quality of water; impurities of iron salts in it are especially harmful. Water lilies and lotus overwinter with rhizomes, but they cannot stand freezing, so they need deep water. Maximum depth - 5 m; optimal - 1.5-2 m, minimum - 0.8 m, but in any case without freezing to the bottom.

Floating

Small floating plants: duckweed, riccia, wolfia, azolla, salvinia, it is not necessary to start in the pond, they will tighten the entire surface, depriving the pond of light and oxygen. Of the large, the water hyacinth eichornia is very beautiful, pos. 16. But, if Elodea is a water plague, then Eichornia is an enraged cross between Genghis Khan and Hitler. In warm countries, where elodea is listed as a malicious weed, water hyacinth was awarded the title of national disaster: it paralyzes shipping, disables waterworks and hydroelectric power plants. In addition, he releases substances into the water that destroy all living things in the pond, except himself. Therefore, if you really want to, you need to keep the eichornia either in a swamp or in a bay connected to the pond by a narrow shallow channel. How to attach it to the pond, see below.

An excellent, absolutely useful and decorative floating plant for the pond is the water nut chilim, pos. 17. He is an aboriginal, but his culture is difficult: demanding of conditions of detention. Chilim is an annual; to resume it in next year you need to leave the nuts in the pond for the winter. If the harvest is plentiful, then the surplus can be eaten: ugly in appearance, everything is horned, chilim nuts are useful, very tasty and nutritious.

Oddly enough, but for beginners, the best floating aquatic plant turns out to be a tropical pistia, or water salad, pos. 18. The name is given only by its external resemblance, pistia is not eaten. Pistia shades the pond moderately, just as much as needed in the summer heat. It does not interfere with gas exchange, and its long hairy roots are an excellent refuge for fry. Pistia will not survive winter in a pond, but a few young bushes will perfectly last until spring in a small aquarium at home. They are released when the water warms up to +16, and the air to +20. By mid-June, old bushes in open water can grow up to 20-30 cm in diameter. Thinning the pistia is elementary: its bushes, like the Vallisneria, are tied in curtains with stolons. They pull for one, like a crucian carp on a fishing rod, and pinch off the excess.

Note: the described plants, their choice for landscaping the pond is far from being exhausted. A more complete picture of pond plants can be obtained by taking a video tour of the famous nursery of aquatic plants A.M. Marchenko:

Video: excursion to the nursery of aquatic plants A.M. Marchenko

Mini ponds

Miniature ponds are of 2 types: shallow and deep. In the former, the ratio of the area of ​​the water surface to the volume of water is approximately the same as in the large ones. The second, in essence, are separate wintering pits, narrow and deep. Both in terms of beauty are quite capable of competing with large ponds, but the costs of money, labor and space require immeasurably less.

Basins and barrels

In shallow mini-ponds, either emergents or aggressors like water hyacinth are kept; with a sufficiently large surface area also floating plants. A water garden nursery of this kind can be built from basins, pos. 1 in fig. They also make bays for large ponds or cups of homemade cascades.

A great deep-water little pond suitable for nymphs comes from a plastic barrel. Steel must be carefully primed inside, poured with boiling bitumen and sprinkled with sand. In this case, it is possible to grow a white water lily, pos. 2, and in plastic insulated and with negligible drainage (pos. 4) - varietal nymphs up to the latitude of Lipetsk-Ryazan, pos. 3.

Bath

Small versatile garden pond from the bath. Just digging it in, we get a shallow pond, in which there is enough space for floating, pos. 1 in fig. A bathtub, equipped like a pit for a colmatage pond (see above) will also give a deep-water pond for nymphs; perennial, however, only for places not north of Voronezh, pos. 3 and 4.

Waste rubber

The shallow-water pond from the tire is effective and almost free. Structurally, it is a combination of film and bowl; the construction process and the end result are shown in Fig. If the tire is a truck or a tractor, then a lot of plants will fit in it.

And at home?

Wait, the reader may ask, you can put such a pond at home! True, but for reliability, it is better to lay out a home mini-pond from bricks, as in Fig. on the right, then he will easily stand in the corner. The dried masonry is covered with silicone from the inside, covered with insulation (cheap PVC in 1 layer will go for the house), put a substrate, pour water - and it's ready even for the most thermophilic exotics. Unfortunately, except for the nymphs: the depth is too small, and to make it deeper - the load on the floor will exceed the permissible value.

Friends and enemies

Let someone from the side settle in the pond. Who exactly and what to do with them - this is already a large section of the topic of pond care. Here we will touch on the very basics.

First, don't harass toads and frogs. Every gardener knows how useful toads are on the site. Frogs also hunt for flies and mosquitoes, and their mating trills are an indispensable attribute of the romance of summer-spring nights, like evenings - the singing of a nightingale. However, in the garden pond, frogs do not particularly croak: they yell at their best in vast communities where there is a large selection of males. And if the groom is one for three, then the girlfriends themselves will ride without a quack. Animals are pragmatists, they do not suffer from feminism-narcissism.

Note: Narcissism is a male form of narcissism and narcissism. This remark is in order to comply with the principle of full equality.

Further, do not touch the larvae of non-biting pusher mosquitoes - bloodworms - and small aquatic relatives of the tubuleworm earthworm. They are excellent assimilators and fish food. If bryozoans and / or a freshwater sponge-badyaga start in the pond, they are even better filter-assimilators. These animals are very demanding on the conditions of existence: they settled, which means the pond is prosperous.

Birds are scared away with a scarecrow, but nowadays there is no need to fence a scarecrow out of rags: modern scarecrows for birds are very effective and do not rush into people's eyes. For example, LED flashing beacons are not visible from the ground at all, but they immediately suggest: "You can't come here!" the stupidest duck, confused in the anecdote Stirlitz with Muller.

Without the participation of animal carriers, water bugs often appear in the pond: ranatra (item 1 in the figure), water scorpion, pos. 2, and smooth, or water pheasant, pos. 3 and 4. Water scorpion and ranatra are safe for humans, but do not take a little lover of swimming up the belly of a smoothie in your hands: his bites are unbearably painful; the pain can be so severe and prolonged that you will have to see a doctor.

All large bugs in the pond are harmful: they spoil plants, eat eggs and fry. Unfortunately, the only efficient way get rid of them, except for catching by the piece - continuous filtration of water. In this case, the larvae die in the filters and the population dies out. Small water striders and diving spiders do not need to be touched: they are harmless, let the kids be amused.

Also, under their own power, in the form of resting eggs in the dust, in ponds sometimes shitten crustaceans, pos. 5 and 6. They are harmless idle eaters, reproduce poorly and do not harm the pond. Shields lived on Earth long before the dinosaurs; observing these living fossils is very interesting.

As for unwanted plant settlers, any algae is intolerable in the pond. A well-groomed living pond is planted only with higher aquatic plants. Fortunately, there are plenty of algae control products on the market. With the help of modern drugs, even such filth as blue-green algae Vietnamese is completely exterminated.

There was no sadness ...

Whoever burns himself to build a pond will have a mouthful of chores. Some of them are pleasant: a recreation area, a stream-waterfall, fish. Some, like cleaning and maintaining the pond, are not very good. But the beauty, grace and peace of mind from the pond are worth it. Therefore, instead of a farewell parting word, on the right there is a greetings from uninvited, but useful and, if you look closely, quite nice new settlers. And in the appendix to the text - several a photo of what you can achieve by building a pond with your own hands:

The wonderful atmosphere of a garden in the country, painted with exquisite colors of nature, will ideally complement an artificial reservoir sparkling under the rays of the sun, which today is an integral element. landscape design... Quiet water harbor, fish, waterfalls, ornamental plants like nothing better emphasize good taste the owner and his aesthetic nature. How to properly build a pond in the country with your own hands so that it brings a minimum of hassle during operation? In this article we bring to your attention various options solutions for creating an artificial reservoir, near which you, your family and friends will relax with their souls and get an unforgettable pleasure from the beauty of nature.

Varieties of reservoirs

Today there are a large number of different ponds, which are classified according to the principles of construction and various characteristics.

In terms of shape and style, the following types of ponds are distinguished:

• formal or with correct geometry;
• landscape or with irregular geometry.

The first type of decorative reservoir is distinguished by a strict outline, its sides intersect at right angles, thus forming diamond-shaped, rectangular or other similar combinations. As facing materials most often they use bricks or tiles, which impart some rigor to the structure. A formal pond is appropriate in a country house, where other buildings are already present, rectangular paths.

Landscape ponds are often called decorative ponds. In terms of structure, such reservoirs are similar to formal ones, but their outline most often has a smooth shape in the form of a coastline. Of course, the type of such a reservoir can be very diverse, it all depends on imagination, the main thing is that the pond has the most natural look.

By water level decorative ponds are divided into:

• raised;
• recessed.

The raised ponds mainly perform the decorative function of the landscape design of the summer cottage, and they are created with the geometry of the correct shape. The depth of such a reservoir is very small - within the boundaries. The advantages of such a decorative element in the country are the minimum physical and financial costs.

However, the disadvantages are immediately visible - in winter time such a pond freezes through, and you can only breed in it annual plants, and there is no place for fish here.

To create a buried pond, you will need to perform some earthen robots using waterproofing materials. In such a pond, you can grow without problems perennial plants and get fish.

Choosing a place for a decorative reservoir in the country

The key to a well-groomed pond is its correct location. It is best to create a decorative reservoir near a house or a place for recreation, for example, a gazebo. So you can watch the playing water surface while drinking coffee or reading a book. However, the main criterion for the location of the pond is the surrounding landscapes.

It should be built in an open area, since large deciduous trees not only create problems in the fall, but their rapidly growing roots can damage the pond system. It is also important that the reservoir is protected from strong winds, as they will negatively affect the development of coastal plants.

You also need to consider natural lighting. For a favorable reservoir of development in the rays of sunlight, it should be no more than 10 hours, otherwise small bacteria may begin to multiply in the pond, as a result of which it will become overgrown with mud and algae. With very low illumination, the development of already existing deep plants will be hampered.

Construction of artificial reservoirs based on a bowl

During the construction of the reservoir, mistakes must not be made, since it can turn into an ordinary swamp, inhabited by frogs and midges.

Unlike swimming pools, water in a reservoir must not only be ozonized and breathe, but also have a certain acid balance. And only by observing these conditions, the pond will be in a natural state, and the growing plants and fish living in it will flourish and multiply.

Choosing a container for a reservoir

The easiest way to make a mini-lake in the country is to build a pond on the basis of a bowl.

Depending on the capacity and material of manufacture for the structure, you can choose the following bowls:

• polyethylene container with a capacity of 150-900 liters

This option is the most optimal for a small suburban area. Depending on your wishes, you can choose a variety of colors, shape and configuration of the bowl, its service life is about 3 years.

• plastic vessel with a capacity of 1200-1600 liters

Such a base is more durable and strong, the service life is about 10 years.

• propylene or fiberglass mold with a capacity of 5000-6000 liters.

With the help of such a bowl, it is possible to equip an artificial reservoir with an area of ​​more than 10 m² and a depth of about 1.5 meters in summer cottages. The service life is approximately 30 years, in addition, if necessary, various types of repairs are allowed.

Having determined your financial capabilities, and having opted for a bowl, you can start building a pond in the country.

Stages of building a pond in the country based on a bowl

Having chosen a suitable place for the mini-lake, we proceed to the arrangement of the pit:

• The first thing to do is markup. To do this, place the container upside down on the intended place of the reservoir and make notes along its contour.
• Then we drive in the pegs with an indent of 15 cm from the contours of the marking, while its outlines should be completely repeated.
• The next stage is digging a pit, while it should be borne in mind that the pit must fully correspond to the parameters and shape of the bowl. The depth should be done with a margin of about 25 cm for the sand cushion.

• We thoroughly clean the bottom from various stones and roots.
• It is necessary to carefully align the bottom of the pit, for this you can try to fit a bowl into it and see if you need to carry it out land works, or already the pit corresponds to the dimensions of the container.
• If the parameters of the pit correspond, then it is necessary to carefully tamp its bottom.
• Then the ditch is completely covered with waterproofing material.
• A sand pillow should be laid on the bottom with a layer of 20-25 cm.
• Now you can start laying the bowl on the sand cushion. Its horizontal position is checked, after which the free space is covered with sand. Together with filling the sand, you need to fill the container with water in stages.
• Then you can already show your imagination and start arranging a mini-lake in the country.

Do-it-yourself pond in the country based on a flexible insulating polymer

Insulating film types

If you plan to build a large pond, then flexible insulating material is ideal for these purposes, thanks to which you will not limit yourself in choosing the shape and size of the pond.

We are talking about polyethylene, PVC film and butyl rubber.

It is only possible to build a pond using plastic wrap if it is planned to be temporary. The thing is that this material is quite fragile and easily damaged. The service life of a plastic film, as a rule, becomes no more than three years.

Film made of PVC (polyvinyl chloride) is quite in demand in the construction of an artificial reservoir, it is very durable and reliable, its service life becomes 10-15 years.

Today, the best solution for equipping a reservoir in the country with your own hands is butyl rubber. This material is as strong and reliable as possible, it is not afraid of the sun and frost. It will serve you from 30 to 50 years.

For the price, of course, the most economical option, but at the same time not the most durable, is a polyethylene film. The most expensive and reliable is butyl rubber. If it is too expensive for you, then stop at an insulating material made of polyvinyl chloride, it is almost half the price, but at the same time it is strong enough.

Construction stages

It is best to carry out work on the construction of a pond on the basis of an insulating film in the summer, when the air temperature will be about 20 degrees. In order for the film to become more elastic, it must be kept in the sun for several hours.

• At the first stage, the marking is done and a foundation pit is dug.

This is done according to the same principle as when building a pond using a bowl, but here more attention should be paid to the depth and shape of the pit - it is necessary to correctly divide into zones, which are performed in steps. In this case, the width of the steps must be at least 40 cm.

Optimum depth of an artificial reservoir:

From 20 to 40 cm in shallow water, or rather the first step zone;

From 50 to 100 cm in deep water, on the last step of the pond.

If you plan to grow fish in a reservoir, then for them it is necessary to provide for a "wintering hole", which is made about 150 cm deep.

• The next step is to carefully level the bottom.
• After removing all large and small stones, roots, etc. the surface is covered with a layer of 5 cm, with a clean layer of sand and covered with geotextile, so that the service life of the film coating can be extended.
• Now you can start laying the polymer itself.

Set the material loosely, while securing it along the edges with bricks. You should not rush to cut the film, since initially you need to fill the resulting container with water in order for the material to take the desired shape.

The dimensions of the insulating film are calculated as follows: the length of the film is equal to the length of the reservoir, 2 depths plus a margin of about 40-50 cm. In the same way, you can calculate the required width of the polymer.

• Underwater part decoration

Immediately after laying the insulating film, you can start pouring water, but it will look very impressive and beautiful if you design the underwater part in a special way, overlaid, for example, with tiles, brick or stone.

If the angle of inclination of the underwater coast is not more than 30 °, then the stones can be laid without fastening them to each other, but with bandaging the seams. For this, the space between them should be covered with clay. If the slope of the bank is steeper, then the stones must be fixed with cement mortar.

Decorative design of a reservoir in the country

When all the construction work is over, we proceed to the design of the reservoir - the last stage of the arrangement of the artificial pond in the country. The coastline can be laid out with pebbles, tiles, stones or any other variety of flooring.

The banks are decorated with small stones by the method of dumping, while the blind area looks like a gutter, the remaining insulating film is kept by poured pebbles.

If you plan to decorate the shore with large stones, then you must first organize a concrete base, since otherwise loose stones can slide and spoil the polymer.

Ponds look very impressive in combination with fountains, alpine slides, small streams. An excellent option for a small artificial reservoir would be a floating fountain, it is sold already with all the necessary equipment, you just need to turn it on in the electricity.

If there is enough free space in the reservoir, then be sure to make an artificial waterfall with 2-3 cascades through which water will flow into the bowl.

To organize it, you will need such main components as a powerful pump and a branch pipe, which will supply water from the pump to the top of the cascade. To create cascades, you can use molded pallets or a thick waterproofing film. It is best to run the branch pipe underground, if this is not possible, then just carefully mask it. The following figure shows a diagram of the organization of a waterfall with 3 cascades.

Plants such as reeds, ferns, feces, iris, lake reeds, etc. will perfectly decorate the pond. Plastic or metal vessels are used to plant them. Cover the sides of the container with clay so that the water does not wash out the nutrients of the earth.

Flowers and leaves of aquatic plants must always be above the surface of the water. For example, for water lilies, the required depth is up to 100-130 cm, and for an arrowhead, 10-20 cm will be enough.

In the reservoir, it is imperative to plant aquatic plants - oxygen generators, which produce oxygen and prevent the multiplication of various algae.

It is best to plant terrestrial plants in containers dug near the pond in order to prevent ingrowth of roots under the pond. Populate the fish in the water. You can decorate the ground part of the reservoir with a bridge or other decorative elements, let your imagination run wild.

Pond in the country - photos of beautifully decorated artificial mini-lakes:

Filters, weir and lighting

In order for the water in your reservoir to be always clear and clean, you need to take care of its filtration. To organize this treatment system, you will need plastic pipes and reinforcing hoses. The pump and filter system should be selected taking into account the volume of your mini-lake and the desired degree of filtration.

When arranging a reservoir in the country, you need to think about an element such as a spillway. Thanks to it, it will be possible to regulate the water level, for example, in the spring during rains or when the snow melts, our pond will never overflow the banks. The weir is a small depression at the bottom of the reservoir, filled with pebbles. Drainage pipes are brought to this depression, with the help of which excess water will be drained from the mini-lake.

Any artificial reservoir will look spectacular if equipped different kinds backlights.

If you choose the right spot lighting, then in the dark, the artificial reservoir will come to life, fill with new highlights and take on unusual delightful forms.

The lighting can be placed permanently at the bottom of the pond, or it can be equipped with lamps that, using weights of various weights, will float at several water levels. But the bulbs located on the fountain nozzle will illuminate each stream of beating streams of water.

At the same time, it is worth remembering that all products that live on electricity must have the appropriate marking, which allows them to be used in water or outside.

Pond in the country - photo ready reservoirs with beautiful backlighting:

• The ideal depth of the reservoir is about 5 m with an area of ​​about 15 sq. m, if you plan to increase the area of ​​the pond, then accordingly you should increase its depth, for example, at 20 sq. it is desirable that the depth is more than 1 m.
• In order not to disturb the balance of the ecosystem, it is better not to change the water in the artificial lake.
• Plant all plants closer to the shore.
• The ratio of water and vegetation should be 1: 4, in this case, the ecosystem will not be disturbed.
• It is advisable that the stones in the reservoir are not made of limestone, as it makes the water alkaline, which will negatively affect the fish living there.
• Do not be alarmed if after the first flood of water into the reservoir, it becomes cloudy. This is due to the fact that there is a stage of colonization with microorganisms, after some time, after reaching the equilibrium of the ecosystem, the water will be purified.

Maintaining order in the reservoir

Like other structures, the reservoir needs some care. It is not required to expend special physical strength here, with correct selection aquatic plants in your mini-lake will gradually establish a biological balance, and the system will control itself, you just have to help it a little.

Pond care is very simple and logical:

• In summer and spring, regularly remove thread-like algae from the pond with saka, and weeds around. If your pond does not have a filtration system, then you can buy special chemicals that will saturate the water with oxygen without harming all its inhabitants. In summer, when the water evaporates quickly, top up as needed.
• In autumn, remove fallen leaves to the surface in time, as they will eventually sink to the bottom. Transplant some frost-intolerant plants into separate containers for wintering. Thin out overgrown plants. To protect the reservoir from various debris for the winter time, pull a special mesh over its surface.
• In the spring, somewhere in April, you can already start the reservoir - cut off the dried stems, clean the walls and bottom of silt, if available, connect the fountain lighting.

As you can see, the hassle of caring is quite insignificant with how much emotion and joy this living wonderful corner brings you.

Whether you love swimming or just relaxing near the water, relaxing on the waterfront is one of the great pleasures of summer. But not every summer resident has the opportunity to build a summer cottage near the water. Therefore, sooner or later, each of us thinks about how difficult it is to make a pond on the site with our own hands. Ideally, we see a pond in the country not only as decorative element landscape design, but also as a small reservoir in which you can swim with pleasure on a hot day.

However, faced with colorful descriptions of the technical difficulties, costs and nuances of regular care, many of us give up this venture.

Let's start with the basics - what makes a pond fundamentally different from a pool is its self-regulation system.

Do-it-yourself bathing pond.

We will tell you the process of creating a pond step by step, and you can make a garden pond with your own hands - by building a cool oasis in the middle of the heat right on your summer cottage, where with every light breath of a fresh breeze our everyday worries disappear.

A garden pond is a living organism.

The pond in the country simulates the process that nature uses in order to keep the lake clean. Everything - from the size and shape of the pond, plant species and water circulation - are designed to keep the pond in a stable natural state.


The problem the pond owner faces is keeping the balance between plants and water - plants either die or cover the entire surface of the pond. Only a pond that is a balanced ecosystem ensures optimum water clarity and quality and maximum pond bathing pleasure.


The water in the pond must circulate among the roots of the plants in order to be cleansed. Plants enrich the water with oxygen, which supports the vital activity of beneficial bacteria that utilize pollution and potentially harmful organisms as well as create a habitat for dragonflies, frogs and other aquatic life. The result is a stable, ecologically diverse system. Nature has revealed its technology for us and we need to use it carefully.

How to make a pond yourself. The principles of the pond.

Water is a living biologically active component and all purification takes place due to the work of plants and beneficial microbes. For this, a swimming area and a filtration area for plants are provided in the pond. The filtration zone is actually a swampy part of our water zone, and just like in nature, it is it that guarantees the purity of the entire reservoir. This zone should occupy at least 50 percent of the total area of ​​the water surface of the pond.
If you have noticed, then in nature there are almost no tiny reservoirs with a stably clean surface of water - they quickly overgrow or silt. A natural stable biological balance can be achieved in ponds with an area of ​​100 sq.m. Smaller ponds require more of our attention. their biological balance is precarious. Therefore, to keep them clean, these ponds include a skimmer and UV sterilizer, but still offer a chemical-free bathing area and support the growth of aquatic plants.


It is useful to add oxygen to the water on a regular basis. small waterfall, stream or fountain. Although, for the same purposes, you can use an aerator.

How is the water purification in the pond.

You can see that the process of filtering water in a pond is not difficult:
1. Water from the swimming area enters the regeneration area.
2. Water circulates back to the bathing area.

Through the drainage pipes under the plant roots in the regeneration zone and / and after the skimmer, the water is pumped through the UV sterilizer into a waterfall, stream or to the bottom of the swimming zone. The pipe leading to the bottom of the swimming area is slightly raised above the bottom so that the flow of water prevents the formation of silt at the bottom.

What should be the shape of the pond.

The pond bowl looks more like a soup plate with large edges than a bathroom. The difference in height should be about 30 cm for every meter of depth. It is this shape of the pond bowl that ensures the stability of the walls. The figure shows a cross-section of a pond with a planting and bathing area:

After compaction of the surface layer of the soil in the pit, geotextiles and a hermetic insert are placed on the bottom of the pond. In the plant area - drainage pipes and gravel. In order to separate the swimming zone from the plant zone, a small bump is formed - its top is 3 cm lower from the water surface. It can be made from sandbags or gravel bags. The hillock allows water from the swimming zone to move to the plant zone, where the water is filtered by the plant roots, and at the same time protects the plants from fluctuations in the swimming zone water.


This pond design will allow you to conveniently clean the swimming area without affecting the plant area. In addition to water purification, shallow water quickly warms up and serves as a habitat for frogs and other invertebrates, you will appreciate their benefits when they begin to eat mosquito larvae.

In order to mimic the natural shape of a pond, use a combination of different bank profiles. If you are placing plants on pond terraces, it is best to do so in pots so that they can be conveniently removed when cleaning the pond.

What size pond is right for our site?
The optimal pond size is 1/10 of the area of ​​your site.

How about mosquitoes?
One of the first questions that arises when the word “do-it-yourself pond” is - what about mosquitoes? Mosquitoes reproduce only in stagnant water, but the water in a pond will never be static, so mosquitoes will find it unattractive for their habitat. Even if at some point they appear, the ecosystem of the pond in the form of frogs will reduce their population to a minimum.


Why do a pond in the country?
People who make a pond with their own hands make this decision because they want to see their pond as a beautiful part of the landscape design and still have a clean, attractive place to swim on a hot day.
Can I have fish in the swimming pond?
Unfortunately, the fish, on the one hand, eats the beneficial microflora with pleasure, on the other hand, it is the carrier of pathogenic bacteria, so there should be no fish in the baths.


Is it possible to make a sandy beach on a pond?
The best solution for entering the pond is a walkway or stairs. For a beach entrance to the water, you need enough space, because the angle of entry into the water is small. In addition, the sand is quickly silted up - those beaches that we see are often simply trampled down to sand, most of the shore of the pond is usually densely overgrown with plants.

What should I bathe with frogs?
Yes, frogs are full-fledged and important inhabitants of the pond. Additionally, to purify the water in the pond, it is good to have two-winged edentulous or pearl barnacles, which filter water up to 40 liters per day. You can also get snails (coils, live bearers) - they eat dead plants and cleanse the pond well.

Which the best place for the pond?
It is better to locate the pond away from trees, as falling foliage will rot in the pond. Moreover, growing roots can damage the waterproofing film or tilt the finished container. The illumination of the site should be about 5 o'clock in the morning, and the rest of the time be in partial shade. The pond does not need much illumination because leads to increased algae formation and overheating of water in the reservoir.

What to do with a pond in winter?
In winter, the pond, like natural water bodies, freezes. You do not need to drain it. All equipment (pumps, filters, skimmers) must be removed from the pond for the winter.

Does soil type affect pond creation?
No, the composition of the soil is not affected. There is a misconception that it is good when the water table is high. Actually, groundwater at the level of freezing, rather a problem. Freezing ice can bulge the bottom of the pond. It is especially problematic if the pond is built on a rigid, prefabricated form.

Do-it-yourself pond from film.

The main question when creating a pond is how to make it waterproof. There are several types of pond waterproofing - film, clay castle, concrete and rigid form installation.

Installation of a rigid form is a simple and durable method, but they are usually produced in small sizes up to 3.5 square meters. meters. Their service life is 10-50 years.

Waterproofing with concrete is the most expensive, in addition, to protect it from frost, it needs additional treatment with a frost-resistant agent and liquid glass.

Clay castle - the cheapest in terms of materials, but the most time consuming. In order to make the waterproofing of the pit with clay, the compacted soil is covered wood ash or soot. Then a 15 cm layer of clay dough is applied to the walls, tamped. When the layer dries up, apply a second 30 cm. When the layer is almost dry, rubble is poured onto it, slightly pressing into the layer.

The optimal solution for the construction of ponds with an area of ​​more than 5-6 sq. M. - film waterproofing.


How much film is needed for a pond:
Film length= pond length + 2 pond depth + 50 cm stock for fasteners.
Film width= pond width + 2 pond depth + 50 cm stock for fasteners.

The film is produced in widths from 2 to 10 m, lengths 10-50 m. Knowing your needs, you can choose the optimal roll. The film is bought before digging the pit, this will allow you to cover it immediately when the pit is ready, preventing its edges from crumbling.
Which film to choose for the pond.
PVC film for a pond is cheaper, but eventually deteriorates from ultraviolet radiation, its service life is 8-10 years.
Butyl rubber fabric is more expensive, but has protection from both ultraviolet radiation and cold. The service life of such a film is 50 years.

Do-it-yourself pond photo of construction.

Do-it-yourself pond begins with marking the pit. A curved shape can be marked with a hose. We remove the sod along the coastline and take out the soil with a bayonet - this will be the line of the swamp zone, then the next level of the ground is taken out inside the resulting border, and so on. As a result, our terraces will be 50 cm wide with slopes of 20 cm. When the pit for the pond is ready, all solid objects that can damage the film: stones, roots, etc. , we remove. We level and ram the walls and the bottom of the pit.

Before work, the film is laid for several hours in a sunny place so that it warms up and becomes more elastic. Laying the film is done in warm weather. Geotextile or felt panels are overlapped on the tamped pit; they are needed to protect the waterproofing film from over time protruding roots and stones.


A waterproofing film is spread on top of the geotextile with a margin of 50 cm along the edges of the pit. The edges are temporarily fixed with stones. The film is allowed to sag a little, smoothing and leveling it in the shape of the pit.


The foil inside the swimming area can be protected with stones stacked on top of each other on a dry basis.


Bags of gravel or sand can be used instead of stones. But keep in mind that it is more convenient to look after a pond with plastic walls. - it is easier to clean it from silt and mud.

Pour water into the pit in portions, removing air bubbles from under the film.

When the pond is completely filled with water, the ends of the film are securely fixed in the trench, which is made at a distance of 15 cm from the edge of the pit. In a trench 20 cm deep, the edges of the film are wrapped in a roll and covered with stones and pebbles.

We make a pond with our own hands. Shore decoration.

After you have made a pond with your own hands, before you start decorating the shore, you need to water it abundantly with water and wait 2-3 days, because shrinkage possible. In addition, during this time, the water in the pond will also settle.
We mask the film on the shore with rubble, stones, snags. Planting plants in shallow water. A pond needs plants that oxygenate the water. There are a lot of suitable plants - reeds, lobster, iris, swimsuit, marigold, arrowhead. Any plant that grows on the shore of a natural reservoir will work for your pond too. Don't forget about algae like hornwort that just floats in the water. Deciduous ornamental shrubs it is better to plant behind marsh grasses that are planted directly on the shore.


Additional charm is added to the pond by lighting.


Floating flower beds look tempting on the surface of the pond.


Pond safety.

If the family has very young children, then perhaps the construction of the pond should be postponed until they are older. It is necessary to consider visiting the pond for the elderly and children. school age... Make a comfortable ladder to enter the pond, remember to clean it so it doesn't get slippery! All other sides of the pond, except for the entrance, are best covered with plants.

Pond care.

The new pond will take on its natural appearance within a year - while it will form its ecosystem. The small world of your pond is very vulnerable. The pond can quickly heat up or freeze, water can evaporate or the pond can overflow after rain. This puts a strain on aquatic life that cannot instantly transition to a safer, more stable environment.


Therefore, your pond, like any living organism, requires care. On a hot day, you need to add water, collect the debris that floats on the surface with a net, check if the plants have grown or perhaps something has not taken root and you need to annoy. However, a surprising number of life forms will colonize your new pond, they will quickly explore new waters and will stay if conditions are right.

The quiet splash of water is the most enchanting melody of a hot summer, the water bewitches, attracts and seduces us with a playful play of light, transparent depth and invigorating coolness. A do-it-yourself pond will give your dacha a special charm.