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Garden Pond Tour: My Favorite Outdoor Space

Summertime – and the livin’ is easy! It’s super hot out but I don’t care because I love summer. Especially when I can spend time enjoying my garden pond.

Backyard Koi Pond by Aquascape

 

Everything is lush and green in my backyard and it’s my favorite place to be right now. I feel blessed because having a pond is like having my own vacation spot. It was installed by Aquascape, Inc., which is where I work.

Backyard Garden Pond with Waterfall

 

When I step outside and hear the waterfall, I’m instantly relaxed.

Backyard Waterfalls by Aquascape

 

Almost every day is a new discovery of nature, and I don’t know what I love most. There’s the beautiful waterlilies that are a favorite. The blooms open in the morning and last a few days.

Pink Beauty Waterlilies

 

If you’re a gardener, you might want to consider adding a pond to your garden. There are so many varieties of waterlilies and new ones are being hybridized all the time – like this purple one called Violicious. It’s the first purple hardy waterlily.

Violicious Waterlily - the first purple hardy waterlily

 

Violicious Waterlily - the first purple hardy waterlily

 

I have two waterlilies in my pond – the Violicious and this pretty Madame Wilfron Gonnere waterlily. Both are hardy – meaning they come back every year like perennials. You can see one of my fish beneath the waterlily. It’s a golden orfe.

Pink Beauty Waterlilies

 

It’s hard to get good pictures of the fish. They never hold still for the camera! I love watching the fish swim in the pond. I have seven of them; one koi (not pictured), two exotic goldfish – the orange and white ones, a calico shubunkin, and two golden orfes.

Exotic Goldfish in Garden Pond

 

And on occasion – I have frogs in the pond. In the spring we had a few toads, and now that it’s summer the frogs are here.

Frogs and Waterlilies in a Garden Pond

 

And yes, frogs really do hop from lily pad to lily pad.

Frog on a Lily Pad

 

You can grow waterlilies in a container if you don’t have a pond. Just make sure it receives 6 hours of sunlight per day. I have a peach-colored one in a Patio Pond.

Waterlily in Mini Pond

 

My garden pond is less than a year old, but I’ve been busy planting in and around it.

Aquascape Garden Pond

 

I planted both pink and purple pickerel in the pond.

Purple Pickerel

 

Purple Pickerel - Marginal Pond Plant

 

Outside of the pond I planted several types of coneflowers.

Pink Coneflowers in a Cottage Garden

 

Pink Coneflowers in a Cottage Garden

 

I have more plants in and around the garden but didn’t take close-up shots of all of them. Aquatic mint, pennywort, water celery, water hyacinth, hardy fig, coral bells, clematis, and more.

Garden Pond and Waterfalls

 

I hope you enjoyed touring my garden pond! I spend time out by my pond every day – it’s by far the best addition to my yard.

Visit Aquascape Inc. for more pond, waterfall, and fountain inspiration! You can buy a kit and do it yourself, or use their online locator to find a Certified Aquascape Contractor in your area.

 

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9 Comments

  1. This is beautiful!!! We too have a pond, just a small one, and our boys (now 27 & 30) have enjoyed all of the fish, frogs, turtles, even ducks that have come visit our yard over the years. 🙂 The birds come and bathe in the little waterfall and in winter my husband puts in a heater to keep it from freezing and the dear come and drink. Wildlife needs a water source and we get to enjoy watching them use it. Loved seeing all the varieties of water lillies! Thank you for sharing this story.

  2. Thank you for sharing. You are certainly blessed with your own little piece of heaven. All the flowers and plants are amazing and you obviously have worked hard to make it so beautiful.
    Lucky are the creatures who find their way to your pond.

  3. Oh that’s pure heaven!! I dream of someday adding a pond to my garden, but I’m not sure how well fish would do in my zone 5a climate. What a wonderful place to relax at the end of the day!!!

    1. Hi Debbie!

      I also live in Zone 5 (I’m in Illinois). The fish will hibernate over the winter as long as the pond is at least 24 inches deep. You just need to make sure you keep a hole in the ice for the exchange of gasses. You should go ahead and add a pond – you won’t regret it! 🙂

  4. Your backyard pond is so lovely. You have done a beautiful job with all the plants surrounding it and on it. I’m so envious!

  5. It looks so peaceful and your flowers are so pretty, do water lilies smell or just look pretty? You have so many cute frogs and fish its all just so wonderful., thanks for sharing with us.