newbie: micro pond needs a spring clean?

[PennyWalker]

About five years ago or more, I made a micro-pond out of an old plastic baby bath that a neighbour was throwing out.

It's very small - less than 1mx0.5m, and of course not deep!

It has had frogs in it since the first year, and they still seem to be around. Also tiny whorl snails, and ?water fleas. So a bit of an ecosystem.

I cover the top loosely with chicken wire to keep children, cats and foxes out.

Last summer it got really cloudy and silty - perhaps because lots of spawn didn't hatch and all rotted in the pond?

There doesn't seem to be much plant life in it except that tiny floating one (duckweed?). And it is full of silt - the very top layer of water is clear when it's had a chance to settle, but a thick silky layer of silt is not far below the surface.

It seems as if I should clear some of the silt out, and install a couple of small oxygenating plants which won't get too big for the pond. If needed, I can make one end shallower by putting in bricks and stones, but it will reduce the volume of water a lot.

Advice very gratefully received on whether this is the best course of action, and what plants I should get.

[Wetnwild]

You could use an upturned pond plant crate to stand a plant on, as this would displace hardly any water. I think putting some plants in there would increase the wildlife value by oxygenating the water and creating more habitat. You could try hornwort (Ceratophyllum sp.) floating in the water itself or Marestail (Hippuris vulgaris) or Marsh Pennywort (Hydrocotyle vulgaris) planted near the surface - they are all native oxygenators and available from some aquatic plant suppliers. If you also add a tall reed-like plant this will enable damselfly larvae etc to easily leave the pond when they need to.

I don't know that I would bother removing the silt unless it is reducing the water volume a lot, as the silt will be harbouring small invertebrates. If the silt is washing in from the surrounding garden it will increase the nutrient levels in the water though, which will increase the chances of the water going green and make it harder for oxygenating plants in the water to receive enough light.