Wisconsin Pond Build

[j.w]

Very nice work herz. Your lights look like a little city at night in the middle pix. You are one busy guy! Love all your neat colored fishies. What a deal from Petco.

 

[taherrmann4]

Herz if you didn't want to use the drain pipe for your overflow you could just build a small dry stream bed with rock that leads out to your yard grass.

 

[herzausstahl]

Sissy,
I'm not sure how much they will shrink. I used all AC2 treated lumber, so time will tell. Spacing is only a 1/4 inch at most I believe, but don't have any dogs due to the fact that I have 3 cats. But if it ever did shrink that much I used Deck screws that were coated so they shouldn't rust and I should be able to move most if I had too, but would prefer not too. PS...first I need the millions to hide! lol too bad I don't play the lottery

Thanks JW, I think my wife referred to it as a UFO landing pad, lol. Glad I added the solar lights though since I get lights all the time, but I plan on taking the tops off the stakes and storing them inside for winter so they will last. The stakes are plastic and should be fine through the snow and fun of winter, and if not, they were cheap. Yeah the fish were great! The Shubies were only $2.50 apiece and the goldies were all the large feeders so only $0.26 so not bad at all especially since they all had nice coloring on them. Will just have to make sure I don't overfeed them next spring when they get big enough to need it.

Tmann,
If I had thought of that earlier, I totally would have done that, but the pipe is attached to my liner now. Of course that doesn't mean I wouldn't get the idea to cut the pipe just past the liner and put my drain cover back in there and make a 1' long dry overflow stream bed. Will save that project for spring, but thanks for the great idea!

Thanks addy!

 

[herzausstahl]

Got some new fans of the pond. A group of mourning doves love to visit the garden, and by group I mean anywhere from 6 to a couple dozen. You don't realize how many are there until you step outside and see how many fly away. Pretty cool and at least so far the biggest mess they have left is some feathers. As long as they don't treat the pond like pigeons on a statue, I'm cool with them being there.

 

[herzausstahl]

Some of the fish have discovered the stream and began swimming in the current. This led me to want to increase the depth of the stream/pond so they could keep doing this as they get bigger. Also I wanted to make it deeper for winter to be on the safe side. And Tmann I decided to act on your idea for my overflow drain a little early too. Spent about an hour an a half on it, but totally worth it.



Some of the goldies in the stream. I had a pic of one of the shubies in there but he blended in too much with the bottom to be spotted easily in it.



The edge of the pond before I began.



Here is where I shortened the overflow drain to add a piece of liner to make the dry creek bed that will run to the yard.



The edging as I lifted it up and added dirt under the liner to build up the edges and raise the water level.



The finished edging.

 

[taherrmann4]

Herz my morning doves have never left a big mess in my creek that I could tell, they do like to sit on a log that goes over the creek and it does have some crap on it but not that much where I feel that I have to get out the hose and clean off. Robbins in the spring and fall come by and take baths in the creeks and falls, some stand right on the edge of the big rock with rushing water going over it into the pond and take a bath, it freaks my wife out a bit b/c several years ago we kept finding small birds in the pond that looked like they drowned. Haven't found any in the last year or so though. This is one reason I put some driftwood that goes from the edge of the pond into the pond so the birds can get a drink. For some reason they don't like to drink from the creek where it is easier to get to but would rather try to land on a lily or bend over from the rock to get a drink.

 

[herzausstahl]

Here is my new dry creek bed overflow drain. (thanks for the idea Tmann)



The newly raised edges of the pond.



The water level at it's highest point now. In the deep part of the pond it is now about 3'6" deep now (where my pumps are sitting and will ride out the winter). About 4' upriver in the stream it is about 6" deep and at the mouth of the stream to about 2' upriver or so it is now 9" deep, so hopefully deep enough the fish can go upriver in the current a little ways when they get bigger.

 

[j.w]

Excellent job herz! Your fish will love being able to continue using that stream and love the mourning doves. We only see a very few here once and awhile. They sure are skittish. They must feel comfortable in your new pond and landscape set up to be using it often.

 

[herzausstahl]

Tmann,
I haven't seen much mess from them either, so that is good. I do have a lot of rocks sticking up on the edges of the pond in the water so I will have to see if they use those to get a drink, or I might have to add some driftwood also. The mourning doves seem to hang out in the landscaping the most, and the smaller birds get closer for a drink, will have to watch closer next time. Haven't seen any robins for awhile, but will have to watch for them next spring to see if they take advantage of the stream.

JW,
The doves usually are very skittish, I watch them from the dining room patio door (where I took the pics from), and once you step outside they all take off. Thats the only way I can tell how many there are. Once in awhile, one or two will land on the fence and not take off until I get closer. I have 3 bird feeders going now so that should help to keep them coming back, might cut down to just 2 in winter since they are next to the garage and then I won't have to snowblow a path through the drifts in the back yard to get to my other one

 

[addy1]

Very nice hertz......... I have a dry stream bed for my overflow, which has been pretty wet recently. It works great, just keeps flowing down our slope into the back field.

My morning doves have gotten so used to feeding I can almost walk up on them, then get this blast of birds taking off. Right now it is doves, finches, a few cardinals, sparrows feeding. In the winter I get a ton of cardinals, junko's woodpeckers and some other gray birds.

All the birds, including the heron...... love the pond. They do bath in the bog most of the time, the doves like to walk down the rock wall and drink out of the pond.

 

[herzausstahl]

so far mostly doves and finches, wish there would be cardinals!

 

[taherrmann4]

I have had more cardinals this year than any other year. We used to just feed the birds black oil seeds but this year mixed it up a bit and there seem to be more, might be coincidence though.

 

[addy1]

I have had more cardinals this year than any other year. We used to just feed the birds black oil seeds but this year mixed it up a bit and there seem to be more, might be coincidence though.

They swarm my feeders in the winter. I try to keep a flat platform feeder full for them, that is what they prefer.

 

[herzausstahl]

Here are some pics of a Shubie and a couple goldies I added to the pond a couple of weeks ago. Done adding fish now since I am at around 15 goldfish. Will have to see if all are able to make it through the winter ok.
Will post on that next.



Was able to find some nice colored goldfish in the "feed tank" again.



My 3 year old daughter watching the fish.



Some more pics.

And Addy, thanks for the info on the cardinals, will have to see if I can get a platform feeder and draw them in. Any type of seed that they prefer?

 

[herzausstahl]

It looks like I am going to have to pick up some bird netting to put over the pond after all. There is one tree next to me and usually the wind blows the other way, but we had a wind storm last night and it filled the pond. Gonna pick up some netting and then pick as many leaves out as I can before putting up the netting (unfortunately will not be able to get them all).



Here is the culprit, its a nice crabapple tree that is awesome in spring for a week or so when it blooms. Pain in the butt now though.



All the leaves that made it into the bottom of the main pond, not a ton, but still too many for me to leave in. What kind of net does everyone like to use to get leaves and other debris off the bottom of the pond? Does a swimming pool skimmer net work well?



Here are all of the leaves that made it into the stream. Not looking forward to handpicking them all out. But getting up some bird netting will help keep more out!