Wildlife Gardening Works !!!

[aeshna5]

Originally Posted by Susie

I need your advice. Are water mint and pennyroyal good ideas for a small pond or will they, like other mints, take over if given a chance?

I was pleased to start planting up the pond today with water forget me not, water soldiers, crispy pond weed (sounds like something from a chinese restaurant ), marsh marigold, and variagated reed.

I also treated myself to lavender musk cos it looked nice. I don't think it is a native - does anyone know if it is anygood for wildlife?

Water Mint is a good native- like most water plants it can spread, but it's easy to pull some out if there's too much. The flowers are a magnet to bees, hoverflies + some butterflies. There's also some very attractive leaf beetles which feed on it- one-Chrysolina menthastri (=herbacea) is known as the Mint Beetle as well as it's equally attractive cousin C. polita. I would recommend it Susie- I have it in my pond, though don't get the 2 beetles I mention.

[Susie]

Originally Posted by Gill Catton

by crispy pondweed, do you mean Elodea crispus?

Hi Gill, yes that is the one. I know I should use the latin names for things to avoid confusion but they just won't stick in my brain. I have enough trouble remembering the english names, and generally end up calling everything "thingy".

That's a shame about your water hawthorn, Kayleigh, do you know why it died?

When I have mint in the garden I make sure I plant it in a pot so it doesn't go too mad, would that be an idea for the pond, aeshna? I usually take pond plants out of their pots and plant them directly into the mud but perhaps this would be an instance when I won't do that.


I know the water mint flowers are pretty and the bees loved them. Didn't know about the beetles though, so thanks for that.

[nightshade]

If you keep things in baskets initially you can move them if
necessary to improve the aesthetics(there's posh!)

[Susie]

You mean you don't get it right first time then?

[aeshna5]

Originally Posted by Susie

Hi Gill, yes that is the one. I know I should use the latin names for things to avoid confusion but they just won't stick in my brain. I have enough trouble remembering the english names, and generally end up calling everything "thingy".

That's a shame about your water hawthorn, Kayleigh, do you know why it died?

When I have mint in the garden I make sure I plant it in a pot so it doesn't go too mad, would that be an idea for the pond, aeshna? I usually take pond plants out of their pots and plant them directly into the mud but perhaps this would be an instance when I won't do that.


I know the water mint flowers are pretty and the bees loved them. Didn't know about the beetles though, so thanks for that.

When I created my pond several years back I planted everything in the special planters for marginals, but most were pretty good at expanding their empires if they were happy. As Nightshade says at least if you use planters you can shift them about. The leaves have been used in perfumery, so you can excite hubby with eau de water mint!!!

[Susie]

It don't take much, even chicken tikka massala or creosote would do the trick. lmao

[Paul mabbott]

Originally Posted by Susie

It don't take much, even chicken tikka massala or creosote would do the trick. lmao

In your case, probably despite creosote .....

[Susie]

Ahem. Anyway, moving back to the subject matter of the thread ....

my little pond is looking absolutely super this morning!

Do you think it would be very naughty to pinch toad spawn from somewhere local and import it? Obviously I would give the pond a while to settle down so that it would be habitable.

[goosey]

Originally Posted by aeshna5

Water Mint is a good native- like most water plants it can spread, but it's easy to pull some out if there's too much. The flowers are a magnet to bees, hoverflies + some butterflies. There's also some very attractive leaf beetles which feed on it- one-Chrysolina menthastri (=herbacea) is known as the Mint Beetle as well as it's equally attractive cousin C. polita. I would recommend it Susie- I have it in my pond, though don't get the 2 beetles I mention.

You sold it to me aeshna! I have just bought some this morning - so I look forward to all that it brings in the way of wildlife now.

[Dan Salter]

Originally Posted by Susie

Ahem. Anyway, moving back to the subject matter of the thread ....

my little pond is looking absolutely super this morning!

Do you think it would be very naughty to pinch toad spawn from somewhere local and import it? Obviously I would give the pond a while to settle down so that it would be habitable.

Susei sue....looking again at your pond pics ( which are great) im surious how you unike most people manage to get the surrounding mud to cover the vertical part of the liner? ..normally you can get the mud to the very edge but somehow yours stuck to the walls?....or has it all plopped off by now?