IN MORE THAN 25 YEARS of operating two homemade in-ground water gardens, I have probably broken lots of rules—especially about winterizing. But there are some rules I never break, and keeping the surfaces from freezing over is the most important one of all.
If trapped under a solid sheet of ice, decomposing plant material and wastes from fish or other inhabitants can create a building of noxious elements such as ammonia, nitrites and carbon dioxide, all of which can harm (or suffocate) any life overwintering in the pool, and also taint the water.
Make a plan now to keep a hole in the ice; never let the pool freeze completely over. Depending on the pool size and your wintertime lows, maintain at least a small hole in the ice with an appropriate wattage level of floating pond de-icer (that’s one of mine, above; there are many styles and sizes). Water-garden suppliers can help you choose the correct de-icer.
Some water gardeners use a bubbler, or aerator, operated by a pump and submerged maybe 6 inches and positioned near the edge of the pool, to keep a hole open; that doesn’t work here in a harsh winter, but may for you. In early spring, before I pull the de-icer, the frogs act as if it’s a float to sunbathe on (below). All winter long, the birds thank me for supplying water as a side-effect of my de-icing scheme.
I am in a cold-winter zone, so I turn off my pumps around Thanksgiving, meaning the spillways and biological filters are no longer operational. I don’t pull my pumps (some experts recommend it), but what turning off the water does is protect tubing–much of it is exterior to the pool–from freezing, then perhaps rupturing during thaws. I do lift, empty and clean external filters (because they, too, would freeze and
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After 20 years of having a lawn that took, I wanted a yard that contributed: to the planet, to local animals, to biodiversity, to my neighbors, to my mental health. With the sage (native plant pun intended) design work, counsel, and collaboration of David Godshall of Terremoto and David Newsom of Wild Yards Project—and a plant-friendly paint palette from color consultant Teresa Grow—another little garden that gives was born.
In the Georgian period of the 1700’s John Aislabie set about landscaping a water garden at Studley Royal near Ripon. Today it is a verdant green garden with ornamental lakes, cascades and vistas to take the breath away.
When I started this series of K.I.S.S. gardening advice, I hoped to inspire those who didn’t know where to begin gardening and those who may have lost joy in their gardening pursuits. After all, there are plenty of things to worry about these days, and gardening should not be one of them. Gardening should provide a respite and an escape from our screen technology culture. So let’s take the advice of Willie Nelson’s boy, Lukas, and “Turn off the news and build a garden.”
For small seedlings that have stems too small to grab with your hand, try using a pair of channel-lock pliers. They are adjustable, so you can grab a long section of stem with the teeth. Use gentle tugs to loosen before pulling out of the soil.
LOST ANYTHING IN THE GARDEN LATELY (besides your mind)? That’s the question Forum member Boodely poses in the Urgent Garden Question Forum this week, and I’m confessing to eyeglasses, every manner of tool and more. (Usually my MIA items turn up when I turn the compost heap.) Lost anything in your garden? On the very practical side comes a twist on the groundcover question, which usually includes the words “for shade.” Not this time.
Ask yourself this: Where do you see your garden from most often, and at what time of year? Where does the magical light happen, and catch your eye? For me, it’s a few places:The best seat in the house is the dining-room table (above), where I often plunk my laptop and heaps of messiness when writing and just generally like to be. (So does Jack the Demon Cat, who adores the west view.)I can see a long way due west from that old Chinese wooden chair, and also pretty far south, with a short east snapshot as well…so those directions, starting at the point of my favorite chair and emanating outward, are the primary axes of my garden. Fr