Worth setting up a pond?

[Watsy]

Hi folks, I currently have around a 5' square of space in the garden that I've been tempted to create a small nature pond with no fish in it.
My main concern over doing this is our cat who unfortunately is an incredibly efficent little hunter who will chase and eat anything from flies to birds.

I'm reluctant to encourage wildlife into the garden because of this so I'm in two minds whether it's worth doing or not. It's worth noting we have a small stream that runs along the bottom of our garden on the other side of our fence and I think that might be sufficient for local wildlife rather than me setting up something that could put wildlife at risk.

Any pond owners with cats? Do the benefits of having a pond outweigh the risk of getting caught by a cat, over not having a pond at all?

[King Edward]

A pond will support very different wildlife to the stream, so I'd be all in favour of it. The cat does sound like a problem, but on balance I'd have thought the benefits of a pond would outweigh the downside.

If you do go for a pond, in a small space I'd go for a very shallow one. Perhaps 1' deep at most at the deepest point, with plenty of shallow water (0" to 4"). You might even consider an asymmetrical design with the deepest point near one edge, then sloping up to shallows everywhere else. If you are worried about the cat catching bathing/drinking birds, perhaps an emergent stone in the middle (if it's sufficiently shallow there) could encourage them to bathe there rather than at the more dangerous sides. See this link for ideas on the design of a good small pond.

With dragonflies, the cat might catch some of the adults but, if the pond is good for them, you should be able to 'rear' a surplus so that overall it increases the numbers locally.

[Red Robin]

As it would be a small pond and therefore not a long perimeter, try a low electric fence - That should teach the cat to stay away.

Take advantage of the nearby stream and use water from it to fill your pond. The easiest way to create a small pond is to buy a liner.

Here's mine:



Make sure that there's no cover for the cat to hide and pounce on birds.

[dampflippers]

I would always encourage anyone to build a pond, so the answer is yes, do it.

I do know of someone whose neighbours cat , caught all their frogs so you are right to be worried.
For that reason, I would suggest putting net over the pond each spring at spawning time, or putting a plant tub if it has a favourite fishing perch.
If you net a pond, it should be taut, and lifted above the pond to allow access by amphibians, birds and hedgehogs to drink- maybe leaving a corner without net.

Have lots of oxygenators and marginal plants, rocks and logs to make hidey holes for frogs etc.

[Red Robin]

Be warned that a pond is a real time-stealer: You will spend hours, including at night when the newts move in, observing and enjoying all the fascinating pondlife.

5ft might seem like a small pond but you'd be surprised about the rich variety of life it attracts and also its size makes it much more manageable. You will get things like blanket weed (a sign of healthy water) but you can easily keep it in balance by removing some occasionally.

I'd advise against having fish as they'll eat everything and create excrement but you don't have to go completely 'wild' by not touching anything and letting nature completely take over (unless that's what you want). It's your garden and you're offering an open guest house to pond creatures.

There's lots of info on this site about creating ponds and folks are extremely helpful.

[dampflippers]

Froglife Advice Sheets
http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/Ima..._tcm6-2539.pdf
Natural England - Natural England Booklets on Wildlife Gardening
The Big Wildlife Garden
How to build a wildlife pond | Discover Wildlife
BBC - Breathing Places - Build a pond

[Watsy]

Folks, thanks for the great replies, really appreicate it. Will maybe make a start over the Easter week if not before if I get some time. Looking forward to seeing what wildlife it attracts as I enjoy a bit of insect photography and hope it provides me with plenty of photo oppurtunities. I've seen the odd hedgehog and frog in the garden before so would be nice if I seen them regularly.

I'll take my time and read up on the links posted to have a good idea of how to go about it. Is it a good idea to use small rocks from beaches as I live not too far from the coast but was unsure if rocks from a beach would leach any substances into the water.

[tom00_uk]

its an offence to take aggregates from beaches, rivers etc with out permission and or depending on the aggregate in question a licence

most likely thing you would have is a salty residue, but washing would remove that, also worth putting a magnet in a plastic bag and passing over aggregates as you often get ferrous metal included

[kathateria]

Wash beach rocks first.They are fine.I have them in my fish tank.Borrowed of course

[Red Robin]

*cough* I'm always on the lookout to rescue a good rock