I have loved water and watergardens since I was a child; the surface mirroring the sky, the splash and babble of moving water, the fishes--some darting and some drifting lazily.....the sheer LIFE of it all.
I am including pictures of some of my water gardening projects as well as links to my favorite ponds and ponding suppliers.
Please Note: the pictures on this page are thumbnails. To see the larger picture, click the thumbnail picture. The larger version will open in a new window. Close (or minimize) the new window to return to this page.
Ever wonder how to make a bio-filter out of a flower pot? Or better yet, a plastic storage tote? What about a pond de-icer? Or just how to use Barley Straw to combat string algae in your ponds? I live in USDA Hardiness Zone 3: where winters are brutal and summers...well, summers are short! Here are our current weather conditions
First let me apologize in advance for the quality of many of the pictures here. Most are from basement winter quarters (not always "pretty") and the entire page has been slapped together in response to some email requests for information that I have had (as SOME people are getting spring weather). When there is more time (and sunshine) I hope to have some prettier shots without hot water heaters and cement walls in almost all backgrounds and not a plant in sight :D (But since it is SNOWING here on this Easter Sunday, April 15, 2001 I will just be grateful for a cozy place to winter the finned-kids!)
A flowerpot filter is just a bio-filter for a small pond that is disguised in a large flower pot! Here is how I made mine. The one I saw in the store was over $100; I made mine for less than $20....
My filter is an up-flow or gravity filter. The water comes in and splashes down a stand
pipe (picks up oxygen here), then runs out the holes in the bottom of the pipe (the sediment drifts to the bottom of the pot) and the water rises up through the filter media, then returns to the pond via a pipe or spout near the top of the pot.
The filter media provides a place for beneficial bacteria to grow (they digest and convert
some of the toxins in the water that come from fish waste and decaying plant material and
debris). The thing about filter material: It needs to be lightweight and easy to clean, and have a lot of surface area for those good bacteria to grow. No matter what I use, I rinse it well first. So far I have used the foam-type air-conditioner filter, kitchen scrubbies, those scrubby things you use in the shower to make your soap lather (new ones), and tulle material (cast-off prom decor).
The first thing I did was buy my pump and some air-conditioner filter material (the dark
foamy kind you can cut to fit your air conditioner). I cut a piece of the filter, folded the piece in half and stitched it up the sides to made a sort of pouch....I put the pump inside the pouch, ran the tubing and electrical cord out the open top, then I folded the top flap over a few times and clipped it shut with a clothes pin. That was my low-tech pre-filter to keep the pump from "gumming up" with all the little particles in the water.
That worked OK, but the water was not clearing fast enough to suit me....*g*
Next I went to K-Mart and got a very large plastic flower pot (clearance $8). It is faux terra cotta and has no holes in the bottom (unless you punch out the plugs). I got some pieces of plain PVC pipe: An 18" scrap of 1 1/2" and about the same length of 1/2". I drilled holes (plain old drill and drill bit) along the length of the 1/2" piece, then cut that into 2 9" lengths. I gathered some fittings: 2 each 1/2" 90 degree elbows and 1/2" end caps; and a special "T" fitting.
I assembled the pieces as shown in the photo and pushed them firmly together (no glue). I put the "T" into the flowerpot and rested the capped elbows on 2 bricks (I used egg crate in my tote on top of the bricks to rest the pipe on) creating a settling area in the very bottom of the pot. Next I (very carefully) measured and trimmed out a hole in the pot wall about the size of a set of 1 1/2" fittings (just large enough for the threads of the male one to fit through). I put the male fitting on the outside of the pot with an O-ring slipped over the threaded end and pushed it through the hole I had cut. Then I slipped the second O-ring over the male fitting (from the inside of the pot) and screwed the female fitting on. I screwed them tightly together.
It is almost like a sandwich LOL Male fitting, rubber O-ring (for seal), pot wall, O-ring, female fitting. You could use rubber washers instead of the O-rings if you could find them large enough. When you screw the fittings together, it squashes the O-rings up against the pot wall and makes a good seal so no water leaks out. Also, (for looks) I stuck a little copper spout on the outside of the pot over the male fitting for the return to the pond. I used a bunch of kitchen scrubbies (like Scotch Brite pad but "fluffier") for filter media, then cut a piece of egg crate (the open grid panels that are used for suspended ceilings with lights) with a hole in the center for the stand pipe. This holds down the filter material, makes a good "shelf" to set the plants that I use to disguise the stand pipe, and also you can poke pieces of anacharis (or any other plant you want to use for some "veggie" filtration"), and they don’t float up so bad . I have planned to put a valve at the bottom of the pot to be able to drain the muck off the bottom, but just have not gotten that far. Also, I use a pretty plant stand for the pot, and it might be difficult to get the pot in the stand if there were a valve sticking out of the lower wall of the pot. : )
I realize that this is a lot of information, and that I am probably not a great "explainer". But if you have any questions at all, just email me!
