Tadpole Update - 30/4/2015

This afternoon I spent a good hour just watching the tadpoles swimming around in the pond.  Not so long ago I was worried that perhaps the newts might be scoffing them all up but I can report that there is still an abundance of tadpoles despite their recent disappearance.

As usual the tadpoles are doing a great

job in helping clear up the pond water.

The little armeira maritma plants that I planted in

the stone border around the pond are doing well.

The ophiopogon plants are doing good too.

I could spend hours next to the pond.

Pond Activity - 03/4/2015

Having had proof that the frogspawn

is developing, I have to wait patiently

for the tadpoles to emerge.

I just hope and pray that 

the snails don't eat it all first.

I feel like getting rid of the snails, 

but that would be interfering with nature.

As you can see, they're

really getting to work on it.

I'm thinking of getting some new pond plants

 but I haven't decided what to get yet.

Whatever plants I do decide to get,
they'll definitely be native ones.

The pond water is murky at the moment.

The water will soon clear.

The black dragon plants we added
last year are doing okay and appear
to have grown a little.

The Armeria maritima
plants are doing well too.

The Yellow Flag Iris multiplied

 in the smaller wildlife pond.

Soon the Yellow Flags
will dwarf this little pond.

Pond Border Plants - 04/5/2014

Originally the plan was to have several Heathers growing in the pebble border around this pond. Sadly the Heathers died within weeks of planting so today we finally got round to adding some ornamental grasses and flowering plants instead. Hopefully these will become bushy over time and break up the border as was originally intended.

Armeria maritima

'Alba'

Digging a hole for the first flowering plant

Armeria maritima

'Alba'

Armeria maritima
 'Alba'

Digging a hole for the second flowering plant

Carex comans

'Frosted Curls'

Ophiopogon

'Black Dragon'

Ophiopogon

'Black Dragon'

Ophiopogon

'Black Dragon'

Mentha aquatica

'Water Mint'

Mentha aquatica

'Water Mint'

The view across the pond

A pigeon watching over the work below

The finished result