Pond and Water Feature Ideas and Examples

Water in your Garden is as essential as the Sun

The importance of moving or still water in the atmosphere of all garden environments is of utmost importance.

Water has a relaxing and calming effect and also has the added benefit of attracting a wide range of natural insects, birds and animals that are generally good for your garden and its plants.

We use our knowledge of the way water flows to design ponds, waterfalls, streams and water fountains and we are pleased to show off some of our deigns for water gardens here. Designing water features is an art that is learnt both from great books and practical experience in building flowing and noisy water projects.

Here we show some examples of garden and patio water features of simple and more difficult designs in gardens that we have been involved with. All make a special contribution to the garden space and its enjoyment.

We highly recommend all our friends to research ideas for their own water features and watergardens and would ask that you help to support this site by using Pickabook for your book purchases by following the link to this online shop.

A more modern modern small courtyard slate bubble fountain backed with a bamboo, convolvulous cneorum and hosta in glazed clay pots. These are in a shaded colour that blends the green of the slate with the bluey-green colour of the painted fence.

This lead lion mask with its accompanying semi circular lead water cistern pool forms a formal small water feature outside the dining room doors. The gentle trickling of the water will be very relaxing during summer evenings.

This oak jetty was created to provide a casual seating space close to the surface of the natural pond water. The banks of the pond were re-sculptured and reinforced where necessary to create a cleaner area while retaining most of it's natural feel.

These two natural ponds (above) were cleaned out, removing many years build-up of sludge, weed and grasses. There was a very high ground water-table especially in winter and we were presented with a difficult situation where the initial installation did not allow for the water pressure beneath the liner sufficiently. We had the unfortunate experience of having a liner pushed out of the pond by the force of the water beneath it.

The remedy that we took the following spring was to raise the surrounding banks of both ponds to a level above the ground water-table maximum height, replace both liners ensuring that the sides dressed higher up and into the surrounding soil. The final requirement was that the property owner ensures that the water level in both ponds is kept full at all times of the year to ensure the greater pressure inside the liner exceeds that below and around it.

This existing water feature was very pretty, with a gentle water flow over uneven large stone flags into the shallow standing area with the feature boulders in it. The client asked us to create an additional feature to make a sound of splashing, tinkling, falling water. We constructed this natural stone outlet and also installed a larger pump with an ultra-violet filter to reduce algae growing on the stones.

Having totally stripped the garden to a new design brief. We constructed this small pond in view of the lounge. A small natural stone outlet feeds cleaned water back to the pond through an in-ground pressure filter with an ultra-violet light (U.V.). A natural pebble beach allows birds and wildlife to drink and bathe in safety. (Except for the owners cats!) Planting softens the edges all round.

This is a more natural looking pond with softer planting and a pebble beach. An overall japanese type of feel was created by the use of acer trees and bamboos. A more modern heavy timber bridge allows access to the filter unit via stepping stones set into the rock garden.

Here are a few other ideas and examples of both natural and more formal looking water features.

The various types of aquatic styles such as small spouting springs issuing from stone walling, small modern bubbling up type water features using slate or round boulders for effect to more formal three stage French-style courtyard feature fountains. Click on any picture to see it enlarged.

This very simple pool (right) was created to provide a link between the raised planting border in which the filter is buried and to form a rill across to the main pond. The water trickles out of a small opening in the wall face like a natural spring might at the side of a road on a Lakeland or Welsh hillside.

Two simple bubble fountain features. One uses a large round pinkish granite boulder to link with the hand-made red brick edging and the plum colour slate decorative chips. The other a more pointed slate slab forms the centre of a plum slate circle.

Here is a traditional French-style three tier trickling water fountain feature that we set onto a reservoir. The reservoir is built of concrete blockwork that we then lined with a butyl type of pliable rubber pond liner over a thick fleece underlay. A central pillar of blockwork was then built with space within it to house the pump and support the stone feature. A reinforced mesh grid supports the pebbles with a liner laid over the top to stop the smaller ones from falling through. A separate biological filter unit with an integral Ultra Violet light helps to keep the water clear. Three in-ground light fittings were installed to shine up towards the fountain at night and to highlight the trickling water as it cascades down from one bowl to the next.

A simple shallow stream bubbles up from a small pool and flows over pebbles and slate paddle stones to create a simple japanese-style meandering small stream.