Making a pond in your backyard can reward your family with all sorts of benefits, from providing a peaceful place to meditate to attracting birds and other backyard visitors.

Things to consider when you are planning a Pond:

Maintenance

How much work are you willing to put into your water feature? Do you want a beautiful backyard decoration or a beautiful backyard hobby? Many factors impact required maintenance including location, size, depth, fish, plants, and the quality of the pumping and filtration equipment you choose.

Pond, Waterfall or Both

Do you want a living, breathing ecosystem complete with fish and plants? Or would you rather have a pondless waterfall that simply cycles water from one place to another without supporting wildlife?

Pondless systems require less maintenance but for some homeowners, a water feature without fish or plants seems empty. Let’s face it, fish are fun. They add motion, color and entertainment and kids love to feed them. A fish pond does require more monitoring as you learn how to keep water clear and healthy. But with the right balance of fish and plants and a quality biological filtration system, a fish pond can maintain itself without constant attention.

Aesthetics

What look are you going for? Do you want a naturalistic brook babbling over cobblestones, a tropical garden lagoon or a more clean-lined, modern interpretation of nature? With the right choice of materials and plants, you can create a water feature that looks at home in the backyard no matter what the architectural style.

Location

Where will you get the most enjoyment from your water feature? A spot close to a patio or deck will let people take in the sights and sounds as they relax. Dont forget the view from indoors, though. Placing the pond where it can be enjoyed both indoors and out is ideal.

Size

Attractive ponds come in all sizes. Larger ponds are actually easier to maintain than smaller ones. Put too many fish in a small pond and waste will rapidly accumulate.

Not every backyard is big enough for a viable pond. If adding a pond means you’ll have to rob valuable patio seating space, you may want to consider a smaller pondless waerfall or fountain instead.

Flow

Take a long look at your yard and ask how a pond, stream or waterfall would look if it occurred here naturally. Water should look like it flows naturally within the landscape. If you’re creating a stream that travels to a pond, allow enough distance for some realism. Avoid streams that seem to flow uphill or waterfalls that emerge awkwardly out of nowhere and then disappear.