While ponds are a beautiful addition to a garden, they're also a brilliant way to help make your garden more wildlife friendly.
They help wildlife during a heatwave, create valuable habitats and improve ecosystems in your garden by encouraging animals such as frogs and toads to breed – which is particularly useful if you're following an organic approach in your gardening, as these creatures often feed on common garden pests.
Creating a wildlife pond is easier than you might think: whether you dig one out, or use something as simple as a washing up bowl, there are options to best suit your garden. Once the pond has settled, it's a great place to identify wildlife. Read on for our guide on how to make your own wildlife pond.
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How to make a wildlife pond
1. Select a sunny site and mark out the pond’s perimeter with rope or string. Generally the larger the pond, the more species it will attract, but any pond larger than a metre in diameter will support local wildlife.
2. Start digging. Take off the top layer of turf and put it to one side to use later. Remove any debris in the earth and frequently check that your pond is level. Remember to dig a thin shelf around the perimeter of the pond.
3. Place a layer of old carpet or cardboard at the bottom of the pit. Then lay your flexible synthetic pond liner over the pit. Do not trim the liner yet. Begin to fill the pond with rainwater; the water will pull the liner into place.
4. Once your pond is full of water, cut the liner to fit, leaving a 30cm overhang around the water’s edge. This should slot neatly into the shelf you dug around the pond. Carefully cover the liner with the turf you saved.
5. Begin to plant your pond, bearing in mind the three planting zones: deep water, shallow water and wetland edge. Seek out native plant species, as these will attract and support the widest range of wildlife.
6. Accessorise your pond with features that provide habitat and refuge for invertebrates, such as rockeries, log piles and thick foliage. This should attract larger pond residents, including newts and frogs and hunting bats.
How make a mini wildlife pond
Pre-formed ponds are a sturdy (and often smaller) alternative to flexible pond liners and often come with a range of shelves upon which plastic containers of plants can be placed. If you go for this option, keep your spirit-level handy and use a firm base. Remember that larger wildlife (especially thirsty hedgehogs) will need a gentle ramp in and out the pond, using a combination of gravel and planted areas.
Small ponds can also be made by upcycling other items. An old tractor tyre lined with a durable plastic liner and planted up with sweet grasses, water mint and yellow flag iris in a container makes for an excellent makeshift wildlife refuge, for instance. You can also make a wildlife pond using a washing up bowl, old kitchen sink or even a plant pot.
Where's the best place to build a pond?
Invertebrates such as beetles, hoverfly larvae, dragonflies and damselflies are the beating heart of a good wildlife pond. For them to thrive, the pond will need to be in a sunny spot. Avoid trees or overhanging branches – the leaves will start to clog up the pond, leading to unsightly algae problems in future years.
How deep does a wildlife pond need to be?
As gases diffuse more readily in and out of shallower ponds, most wildlife ponds need not be more than 30cm at their deepest. Generally, the larger your pond, the more species it will attract. However, if space is limited, any pond larger than a metre in diameter will still provide a big net gain to local wildlife, including frogs.
Can you use tap water in a wildlife pond?
No – always try to fill ponds with rainwater; a water butt is a good way to collect enough. Tap water contains nutrients, including phosphates, that can readily be taken up by algae, whose uncontrolled growth can limit the pond’s wildlife potential.
What are the best plants for a wildlife pond?
Broadly, pond plants come in three categories: deep-water plants, shallow-water plants and wetland-edge plants. You should consider each of these zones when planting. If acquiring cuttings, the best advice is to keep it local – moving pond plants (and frogspawn for that matter) over long distances can inadvertently introduce non-native pathogens and invasive species that can cause problems for animals.
If you use a garden centre to source your plants then seek out native species – wildlife charity Froglife offers an excellent plant list. The reason that native plant species are so important to wildlife ponds is simple: these are the specific species to which UK invertebrates have spent thousands of years adapting. They are the food plants for their larvae; the nectar for the adults. They are, essentially, home.
1. Marsh marigold
An adaptable flowering plant, the marsh marigold provides good cover for shade-seeking amphibians at the pond edge. Its bright yellow flowers provide a nectar boost for egg-laying hoverflies.
2. Rigidhornwort
This submerged free-floating pondweed creates underwater scaffolding for a host of pond animals. It takes well to garden ponds.
3. Creeping bent
Newts carefully lay their eggs on the leaves of this widespread and very common wetland grass. Look for egg-laying newts at night with a torch.
4. White water-lily
This floating-leaf classic can grow very quickly in garden ponds. Use planting baskets to keep the roots in check.
5. Yellow flag iris
This prominent shallow water plant produces a dense mat of entangled roots within which young frogs and toads often seek refuge.
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