Putting a small pond in the Garden - Frogs mating in this heat with nowhere to go!

[Tranced]

My parents have had a pond in their garden for years since I wanted one as a kid. We've always had loads of frogs in the garden and plenty of Spawn.

I moved out last year and they removed the pond because it was too big to manage (huge, deep plastic thing with no shelves for plants - bad buy!). I'm back home now and a year on we keep finding Frogs in the garden, then today I saw two mating. The female already looked pretty bloated and I'm sure she's ready to spawn but assume they've got nowhere to go.

I'm thinking about putting a temporary dish in the garden so that they don't dry up and can spawn (especially as my mam has just dug most her plants out the garden to start again). However, I was thinking about getting some pond lining and putting in a small pond that would be easier to maintain.

How much can you expect to pay for a small pond, maybe a meter across and not too deep. Any tips/recommendations on the dimensions of it? Surely I could make a pond of this size quite cheaply and still have a good wildlife pond?

Any help appreciated, want to get this started asap if possible.

Any tips/predictions/advice welcome.

[Tranced]

What is the best way to go about this considering I'd be using tap water? Was going to add the basin tonight but don't want to damage the frogs.

[nightshade]

Have a look here Tranced, http://www.wildaboutbritain.co.uk/fo...all-ponds.html
Leave tap water at least overnight to help chlorine to leach off and water to settle to ambient temperature.
Everyone should follow your example and include a pond in whatever space they have

[Tranced]

Thanks, some good stuff on there.

I agree, I was gutted when I found out the pond was gone! But I understand why, it was like a big deep dish, surrounded by concrete and not the most pleasing thing to look at. That said, it had all kinds of wildlife in. This time I will make it a lot more pleasing to look at, easier to access and no ugly concrete (which one year managed to kill a fair few young frogs trying to leave the pond).

I just hope that the frogs noticed the basin before it was too late. The poor female looked bloated, I think she was already full. What do frogs usually do with spawn if they have no water to put it in?

[Cazzie]

Hi Tranced and well done you for thinking about the froggies!!!

I 'think' that the female frog will maybe just eject the spawn regardless if she can't find a wet area to put them - I found some under my decking once and I HAD a wildlife pond! - nature can be fickle sometimes lol.

At my last house I constructed a 5ft wildlife pond and it was quickly populated by frogs and newts (soz, you'll hafta search back a bit to find it, but I've got some pics on my Gallery ). My nextdoor neighbour had one just a metre across and her froggies came over to mine for 'midnight liasons' during the spring if ya get my drift lol

So bascially yea go for it - dig a hole, make a shelf /wetland area for easy access, line the hole with sand or specialist underlining, bung a bit of liner in and you'll make yr froggies very happy Just make it a deep as you can to stop it overheating in the summer and also to keep the blanket weed growth down ok.

Good luck and post some pics when yr done

Cazzie

[BarbaraEmma]

Hi Tranced,by coincidence just today I've nearly completed putting in a small pond.It's about 6 ft x6ft and one area is 2ft deep rising to a ledge of 1ft deep then a platform all the way around very shallow going to nothing.I'm hoping to finish it perhaps tomorrow.
Anyway, the Butyl liner cost approx £80 but we could have had polythene cheaper about £50 I think.The under lining was £30 but someone has since told me I could have used old carpet or even old clothes from a charity shop as it's only to stop stones sticking in the liner.
My thinking was ,I only want to be doing it once ,so I'm hoping it'll last.
I'll try and get some photos of progress tomorrow,if there is any.

[BarbaraEmma]

Hi Tranced and everyone, here are 2 of the photos I took yesterday.
I've got a little bit further today ,but not much.Already had loads of flying things having a look,and the birds are enjoying all the worms I've dug up.

[BarbaraEmma]

Don't mean to hog this thread but I forgot to ask ,could someone give me a list of native plants I'll need for the pond and about how many of each to get ,I think I mean how they spread.Thanks

[Cazzie]

Hey that's coming on great Barbara and it certainly doesn't take long for nature to take an interest eh!

A few native oxygenating plants you could use are:-

Hornwort - Ceratophyllum diversum
Spiked water-milfoil - Myriophyllum spicatum
Water Violet - Hottonia palustris
Water Crowfoot - Ranunculus peltatus
Water Starwort -Callitriche stagnalis

Not sure how many you'd need of each tbh, best you look up their spread and prefered planting depths etc. Hope that helps

Did you go ahead in the end Tranced??

[BarbaraEmma]

Thanks for the info on here Cazzie,I've only just found it,sorry.
I got Starwort ,Irises and,Marshmarigold and Ragged Robin,Mixed Native Grasses and I moved some Fritillaries.
By the way I am feeding the hedgehog. I had to move his house as I was afraid it was too close to the pond and he might go for a midnight dip,but he's still here. and doesn't seem too concerned.