Plant cover surrounding a wildlife pond?

[Insomniak]

I'm looking for suggestions for fast growing plants to surround my new pond.
At the moment it's pretty bare, just 5 or 6 Bugles, a couple of Campanula and a grassy/reed type thing!
I think I want low growing plants, somewhere between ground cover and 6 or 7 inches high.

I've had pond plants growing in buckets, tubs, tanks and plastic boxes for years so the pond itself it not a worry.
I have many beasties living in it and just today I saw the snails tumbling about in the sunshine, so I guess I can look forward to many more!

So, right now, my priority is to get plenty of cover around the pond and would appreciate suggestions, please.

[lipase]

If the grassy reed thing is 'soft rush' then be aware that once it gets a hold it spreads like crazy and is fairly tough to get rid of, the roots can be very difficult to get out! I've got a really nice plant growing round my pond, I'll try and identify it and report back. I really like aquatic mint species, they also spread rapidly, but are easier to get rid of if desired...

[Insomniak]

Originally Posted by lipase

If the grassy reed thing is 'soft rush' then be aware that once it gets a hold it spreads like crazy and is fairly tough to get rid of, the roots can be very difficult to get out! I've got a really nice plant growing round my pond, I'll try and identify it and report back. I really like aquatic mint species, they also spread rapidly, but are easier to get rid of if desired...

Hi lipase. Although this grassy reed thing *looks* like a juncus, it has never produced the characteristic mid-stem flowers that I associate with the juncus plant. It turned up unannounced and uninvited in a pot where I was growing a cordyline from seed about 4 years ago and it has been relatively well behaved since then!
I'll get a pic of it later, maybe.

I'd love to know what your aquatic mint is, it sounds good.

I'm thinking of one of the smaller varieties of Vinca, too, I know it grows fast and creates a nice mass of cover.
The soil around my pond is not wet enough to call it boggy, and in summer it actually gets quite dry, so whatever I get needs to be tolerant of that.

[Insomniak]

There it is!
And I'm almost sure you're going to tell me it's a Juncus!
In the pic, exactly behind the plant in question, you can see the Spiralis juncus in the pond, not thriving at the moment, it's been confined to a small tub for over 2 years so it should improve now that it's got a bit of space.

[zigzag]

'Mind your own business' (soleirolii) is really good, it's a very small leaved low growing plant that doesn't mind having it's roots wet. It grows quite fast but is not unmanageable and has very shallow roots. It looks good with bugle and is great for covering the edges of pond liner and for growing in between rocks & cobbles. It used to be a popular house plant years ago but will tolerate most winters and stays green during all but the harshest.

[aeshna5]

Originally Posted by Insomniak

There it is!
And I'm almost sure you're going to tell me it's a Juncus!
In the pic, exactly behind the plant in question, you can see the Spiralis juncus in the pond, not thriving at the moment, it's been confined to a small tub for over 2 years so it should improve now that it's got a bit of space.

It's Soft Rush, Juncus effusus.

[dampflippers]

Water forgetmenot and brooklime will grow on land too.
I love Mimulus luteus- very fast growing and will reseed itself. Choose the one for moist ground.

[dampflippers]

If you just want a quick fix you could even put in lobelia plugs, but water of bog plants would be better.
Hottonia will also work.

[Susie]

Marsh marigolds, ladies smock, water forgetmenot, creeping jenny, devils bit scabious, brooklime, ladies mantle, bog bean, a creeping bistort, comfrey, valerian, sweet cicerly, hemp agrimony and purple loosestrife are just a few plants that are growing in and around the margins of my pond (the latter five are all tall).

[Insomniak]

Great suggestions there, I'll take a trip to the garden centre and see what I can find.
I already have Mind You Own Business growing in a few pots (just to keep it in check!) so that's a ready-made solution that I had never considered.
I'll definitely get the Mimulus luteus, I love the look of it.

Great suggestions, thanks, everyone!