Garden ponds are great for making our gardens look pretty, and if well kept, they can even add value to our properties and make our homes appealing to potential buyers. Garden ponds look fabulous in the summer and they provide your family with a fun outdoor activity, one that can hopefully keep them entertained for many years to come.
But upkeep is essential if you want your garden pond to thrive. If you have a lackluster pond that’s longing for some wildlife or interaction, here are some tips to help you transform your pond.
Turning your pond into a living, breathing home and reserve for wildlife and plantlife will help to create a balanced garden eco system. For families with children, this is fantastic for learning about life and about nature, and for the environment, there are many benefits of encouraging the life cycle of diverse living organisms.
How to Bring Life to Your Garden Pond
- Make your pond accessible – water is a major attraction for animals including mammals and birds. Wildlife is often drawn to water and food and a garden pond can usually offer both. In order to keep your garden alive with wildlife, make sure your pond is accessible and there is nothing dangerous surrounding the pond area.
- Embrace garden debris – green debris is anything from dead leaves to plant stems and as much as you want to keep your pond area tidy, sometimes being too neat doesn’t pay off. Garden debris has a wide range of benefits for animals.
- Get a pond filter – keep your pond clean if you want to encourage wildlife and plantlife. The best way to do this is to install a reliable pond filter that can help keep your water in check throughout the year.
- Feed your pond with rainwater – this is the cleanest source of water for your pond and should always be used instead of tap water where possible. Not only is using tap water a waste of an expensive treated and transported water source but it also has high levels of phosphates and other nutrients. The nutrients can lead to algae and you will end up with a dirty looking browny-green pond which blocks out the natural sunlight, killing plants and organisms to die. Rainwater can be easily collected throughout the year to avoid this.
