Advice on stopping pots from slidding off pond plant shelf

[dustboy]

I just put a couple inches of pea gravel on the shelf and set the pots on top.

 

[Terry25]

I have the same problem with one area of a plant shelf. I tied a piece of fishing line to a small hole in the top of the pot, and attached the other end of the line to a rock at the pond edge. Can't even see the line and the pot doesn't move unless I cut the line.

I put some marginal plants in my pond and used the fishing line idea but today I have had to release a blackbird which was entangled by its leg and would have died if I had not found it.
I used fine fishing line which was hardly visible so I am looking at new ways of securing them now.

 

[rubyduby]

That is so sad Terry25! I had the exact same problem with the slippery sloped sides to my pond when I lived in Virginia and the only thing that worked for me was to make a hole in the pot and tie black nylon cord to it. I would put it in on the shelf (or lack there of) and tie the other end to a stake

I use store bought (Amazon) pond planting mesh bags. When I fill them with soil, they can be sort of molded to fit into place. Then to be sure, I tie strong thin string tightly around them and secure the string around large perimeter rocks.
I do have some pots also. I tie the same string around them too. Some pots don't have a rim on them to hold the string. I drill holes in them to fasten the string.
I also have the same string tied to my large aeration stone for retrieval purposes. I'd rather not pull it up by the air hose.
Fishing line sounds like a good idea. It's strong and invisible.
My large submerged pump has a thin rope tied to it also. This makes retrieval easy as well.
Most of the string can be hidden between the rocks etc.

This is also what I have done when I had a similar pond with sloped sides

 

[secuono]

Use some bailing twine or uv stable plastic string and tie them to a rock or rebar in the ground.

 

[Skovand]

I would not use a string personally. What i typically advise is for someone to sea the pond below the shelf level. Allow the side to completely dry and clean it. Then use a larger pot that smaller pots can be changed in over time. The larger pot is has rocks and medium
Sized stones locked to it with foam. Then foam that to a stone that’s along the edge or to the wall. This will help lock everything into place but still be able to take apart down the road if needed. Depending on skill you can also drain the pond to below shelf level and then fold in the liner and weed barrier as reshape the shelf and then pull back the barrier and liner and run your rocks or mulch back around it to dress it up and refill it up.

 

[CometKeith]

Hi all. Did anyone notice this was a 2019 thread? The OP made less than a dozen entries on GPF and probably is not active any more. It really makes sense to start a new thread if this is a topic you want to discuss!

 

[Skovand]

Hi all. Did anyone notice this was a 2019 thread? The OP made less than a dozen entries on GPF and probably is not active any more. It really makes sense to start a new thread if this is a topic you want to discuss!

I skimmed through and noticed some were older. Did not think it made a difference and that as anyone read through they would see a wide range of thoughts on it spread over years. It’s a common question in the real world.

 

[CometKeith]

I skimmed through and noticed some were older. Did not think it made a difference and that as anyone read through they would see a wide range of thoughts on it spread over years. It’s a common question in the real world.

Hi and welcome to the forum. Maybe someone else can explain it better than me but my understanding is that the original poster asked a question and people are adding replies to try to help them resolve the issue. If there is no active OP and maybe some of the other people who replied aren’t active the thread can get a little weird because it’s not really a current discussion. I have actually seen threads revived that were started by someone deceased and that was really eerie because I did a double take seeing their name in the discussion. Generally most people here won’t answer an old thread so it’s always better to start a new one if you have interest in a subject. Good luck with your pond and by the way I use pea gravel to anchor my potted plants!

 

[jschult2]

Hi and welcome to the forum. Maybe someone else can explain it better than me but my understanding is that the original poster asked a question and people are adding replies to try to help them resolve the issue. If there is no active OP and maybe some of the other people who replied aren’t active the thread can get a little weird because it’s not really a current discussion. I have actually seen threads revived that were started by someone deceased and that was rUeally eerie because I did a double take seeing their name in the discussion. Generally most people here won’t answer an old thread so it’s always better to start a new one if you have interest in a subject. Good luck with your pond and by the way I use pea gravel to anchor my potted plants!

Well, it was my post and I'm not dead. FYI, I ended up using black non adhesive shelf liner (similar to what you would buy as a rug pad gripper).

 

[CometKeith]

Well, it was my post and I'm not dead. FYI, I ended up using black non adhesive shelf liner (similar to what you would buy as a rug pad gripper).

Gotcha. It really depends on the size and weight of what you are planting. One time I planted some large sedges and had to add half a dozen medium sized rocks to keep it from tipping over during storms. Eventually it grew so large my wife made me get rid of it but it took two straight days of cutting to remove everything!