How to Make a Garden Pond With a Rubbermaid Container

Cute little pond

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Garden ponds are wonderful, self-sustaining ecosystems in your garden. They attract birds and wildlife and are easy to care for. You can pay a pond company a lot of money to build a pond, or spend plenty of time and money doing it yourself. If you just want a little pond, it's very easy and cheap to make one out of a plastic container.

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Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

Large plastic container
Shovel
Pavers or flagstones
Aquatic plants

Step1

Pick a spot for your little pond. Remember than placing it under a tree means you will often be cleaning leaves out, especially in fall. Also if you plan on adding some plants, aquatic plants are no different to garden plants in their sun requirements. Having a completely shaded pond means you are limited to aquatic plants that only grow in the shade.

Step2

Choose a large container. If the area you plan on placing it is in full sun, you may want to choose a clear or light color because the water will get quite warm in a black container. Dig a hole big enough to bury it with a lip of about three inches above ground. Burying it flush with the ground means you may have soil and mud running into it, especially when it rains. Fill it with a little water to make sure it's level and use the dug-out soil to pack it in until it is level and supported on all sides. Top it up with water and let it sit for several days before adding plants.

Step3

The raised lip of your pond can be surrounded with brick pavers, flagstone or decorative rocks. The spaces between the rocks can be packed with soil and you can then add ground cover plants if you wish. Ornamental grasses also look very attractive adjacent to a small pond.

Step4

Any standing water will attract mosquitoes. You can of course add a small pump and waterfall arrangement to your little pond, which will deter mosquitoes and other insects. If you plan on leaving the pond still, mosquito egg casings are easy to spot and remove. They look like little black grains of rice floating on the water surface and can be flipped out with a small net or even your finger.

Step5

As long as you have plants in the pond, it will be quite self sustaining. Choosing perennial water plants suited for your growing zone makes it very easy to care for. Most plants need to be rooted in small plastic pots and weighted down with small stones or gravel to hold them in place. Submerge the pots in the water, being careful not to dislodge the stones as you lower it.

Tips & Warnings

Keep the container lid. If you don't have tall plants, you can use it to protect your little pond from autumn leaves in fall.
If you live in an area that freezes over winter, your pond water can be refreshed in spring. Simply run a hose into it until the water has been refreshed and scoop out extra leaf mulch that's been sitting there all winter.
You can add goldfish to your pond, although they will not survive a sub-freezing winter and will need to be transferred to an indoor tank during cold weather months.