What is the best position for a pool? How should I prepare the site? Which plants and fish are suitable? How do I maintain the pond? This guide provides expert answers to these most frequently asked questions: simply pinpoint your question, turn to the answer and solve the problem. It covers everything you need to know on ponds and water gardens, from site advice to planting ideas and includes checklists, plant lists, hints and tips and feature boxes. There is also a troubleshooting section on pond problems.

Table of Contents

Part I Ponds - siting and design: siting; formal; informal; semi-formal; wildlife; bog gardens. Part II Building ponds: materials and tools; marking out and levelling; excavating; flexible liners; rigid liners; using concrete; puddled clay; filling ponds. Part III Other water features: waterfalls and streams; fountains and spouts; lighting; edgings; decking, bridges and islands; bog gardens. Part IV Planting hints and tips: design; techniques; submerged plants; floating plants; deep-water plants; marginals; waterside plants. Part V Increasing your plants - propagation. Part VI Introducing wildlife: fish; insects and molluscs: amphibians and reptiles; birds and mammals. Part VII Seasonal maintenance. Part VIII Troubleshooting: top ten problems; discoloured water; maintenance; structural repairs; neglected ponds; predators; seasonal problems; problems with moving water; planting solutions; wildlife issues; redesigning; safety.