After a hot day, it is always pleasant to relax in the shadereservoir. But what to do to those owners of household plots, near which there are no natural reservoirs? There is a way out, and quite obvious - to create a pond in the country with their own hands. To do this, of course, it will take some effort, time and money, but the result is worth it, because the mini-pond will please you afterwards for many years. 
Choose the shape of the pond
The form of a decorative reservoir must echowith the overall landscape composition of the site. If there are a lot of curvilinear forms of smooth outlines in the layout of the site, then the pond itself should have a free form - oval or drop-shaped, with an uneven line of the shore, which can be decorated with decorative stones, pebbles or plants. If, on the contrary, the entire organization of the site is subject to a strict solution with the correct geometric forms, then the reservoir must be square or rectangular. Create a small pond under everyone's power, just buy a relatively inexpensive plastic bowl. For the construction of a larger body of water, much more effort will be required, and the process of its creation will involve more stages. It will be necessary to start with digging a large pit, removing soil from the site, then it will be necessary to concreate its bottom and walls. It is best to entrust this process to professionals in this business, that is, landscape firms that have experience in carrying out such work.
Choose a place for a pond
How to build a pond in the country, where he shouldfind a place among the fruit trees, flower beds and vegetable beds? When choosing the location for the reservoir, several important rules should be followed. First, near the pond there should be no trees, since their roots can eventually lead to damage to the pond, its bottom and waterproofing. Therefore, the distance from the pond to the nearest tree should be equal to the height of its trunk. If there are several trees, then orient yourself to the length of the trunk of the tallest one. Secondly, it is necessary to take into account such a factor as the location relative to the sun. Ideal is the place that in the summer is illuminated by the rays of the sun in the morning to about half of the 11th, and from 11 to 15 hours is in the penumbra. This is important because the midday heat adversely affects water quality. An important point is also the provision of free access to the pond along its entire perimeter - so it will be more convenient for you to take care of the pond. To do this, you can build a path around it or a path. Mini-ponds and reservoirs on the plots can be built both on level ground and on a fairly steep terrain, while the pond is built into the base of the terrace. You can arrange a spectacular cascade of several reservoirs in such a way that the water smoothly flows from one to another. 
Determine the size of the pond
It would seem that a pond in the countryvery simple. Some are tempted by the opportunity to use the usual old bath or the prepared cup purchased at the store. However, the construction of water bodies with an area of less than 3.5 sq.m. and a depth of less than 80 cm is considered impractical, since the water in them warms up very quickly, which leads to algal blooms. And due to insufficient intake of oxygen, water begins to rot and emit an unpleasant odor. This can be avoided by constructing a deeper bowl or protecting the pond from overheating by shading plants or building pergolas on its southern side. Unfortunately, it's hardly possible to avoid the care of a small pond altogether. This pond must be periodically cleaned, only then it will be able to function normally. Life inside a small pond must be maintained by filtration of water in an artificial way. Only full bodies of water of 100 square meters can exist as full-fledged and independent ecosystems that do not require any special care or intervention in their livelihoods. But because of their huge size, such ponds are rarely used in relatively small household plots. Another significant problem of a small pond in the garden is the freezing of water in the winter, which leads to the death of the inhabitants of the pond. To avoid this, it is necessary to provide sufficient depth, and in winter, to compensate for the missing oxygen, it is necessary to arrange a small hole in it. For the winter period, it is necessary to move plants and fish from the pond to a warm room.
We select plants for the pond
The pond and its shoreline are often planted with ornamental plants to give it a more natural look. Plants used for these purposes are divided into three groups:
- Coastal, which grow along the coast in shallow water (reeds, marsh wilderness, arrowhead, white-winged);
- water that grow underwater (algae);
- plants that float on the water surface (lily, duckweed, water lily).
Coastal and aquatic plants are used forimprove the quality of water and reduce the nutrients contained in it, a large number of which can lead to the appearance of algae. For the planting of aquatic plants, special baskets consisting of small cells are used. They are filled with a nutrient mixture and installed in a pond, so the containers do not float to the water surface and are easily dismantled in the winter.
Creating a pond with your own hands
How to make a pond in the country on your own? Be prepared for the fact that the construction of a pond on the site will require you to considerable money and considerable physical effort. The preparation process includes geological surveys to determine the type of soil and groundwater level. Drainage is arranged if it exceeds the level of 2 m. This is done by laying drains on the bottom of the trench, with the help of which excess water is removed, formed during prolonged rains. At the beginning of the process of creating a reservoir, it is necessary to choose or even specifically to vacate a place for him in the garden. Then you need to mark out its contours on the ground, for which you can use a long rope. After this, it is necessary to excavate inside the contours of a pit of a certain depth with gentle walls. To maintain a constant level of water inside the pond, waterproofing materials are placed on its bottom and side walls. For these purposes, it is best to use PVC-film or special polyethylene. After you managed to excavate the excavation, you can start the process of leveling and sealing its bottom and walls. It is necessary that the angle of the walls with respect to the bottom is not steeper than 45 degrees. After this, it is necessary to lay a layer of moist sand about 10 cm thick on the bottom of the pit, lay a protective lining and a film on top, so that its edges protrude beyond the contours of the reservoir for 30-50 cm. The film should be crushed at the bottom with a stone, and the folds formed around it carefully folded . Then it is necessary to slowly fill the pit with water, while the film will stretch, adhering to the walls and the bottom. After the cup is completely filled with water, the excess parts of the film are evenly distributed into the folds along the entire shore. Those edges of the material, which were previously bent, are cut off with a margin of 20-30 cm and are fixed by studs of metal in several places. The pond on the edge is decorated with tiles or stone, as well as layers of turf. In some cases, fiberglass mats are used as a waterproofing material in three layers. They need to be arranged in such a way that each successive layer slightly overlaps the previous one. More capital, but at the same time more expensive and energy-intensive is a pond from a reinforced concrete bowl. They are usually made for large enough ponds in the form of regular geometric shapes. The bottom and walls of the excavation are covered with a layer of roofing material, which is used as a waterproofing. At the edges of the reservoir, the edges of the roofing roof must be bent and pressed with stones. Then it is necessary to lay successively layers of rubble and sand. After that, a mixture of concrete is laid on top of the sand, and a metal mesh is put on it. After the concrete hardens, the next layer is laid. 
Care of the pond
To the pond pleased you for a long time itsa beautiful appearance, it is necessary to periodically clean up its contaminated water. This can be done mechanically, using a normal net or a special device - a skimmer, installed directly on the pond itself. To clean the walls of the pond and its bottom from the outgrowths of seaweed and silt, you will need to purchase an "underwater vacuum cleaner" that has the ability to suck up dirty water and algae and return already purified water. Purification of water is also done using mechanical filters equipped with pumps. In order to restore the level of acidity, normalization of the composition and control over the propagation of algae, use all kinds of biologics that are absolutely harmless to fish, plants and humans. Water can also be purified by ultraviolet radiation, which destroys viruses and bacteria in water. The process of reservoir cleaning is usually performed in several stages and in different ways, since the use of only one of them is almost inefficient. For example, algae destroyed by ultraviolet radiation is removed from the water mechanically.
Fountains
Landscaping of a pond in a garden areait is difficult to imagine without decorating any reservoir - a fountain that creates a special mood with its splashes and brings dynamics to the perception of the surface of the reservoir as a whole. In addition, the fountain is able to increase the amount of oxygen in the water and thereby improve the environmental conditions for plant growth and the life of the inhabitants of the pond. The fountains available on the market for installation in ponds are equipped with a pump that is designed for continuous continuous operation. With the help of a huge number of different nozzles, you can set the direction and even the shape of the water flow. By varying the head, you can adjust the height and distance of the jet. By the way, it is the fountain that will be an excellent alternative to a decorative pond in a very small area or even in a shady garden. As we already said, creating a full-fledged small pond is very problematic. It is the small size of the reservoir that does not allow the formation of a closed ecosystem, therefore, such ponds very quickly turn, at best, into swamps, and at worst, into foul-smelling muddy puddles. In the fountain, the bowl of which is not filled with aquatic plants, and the bottom is not lined with soil, the water remains clean all the time. To build a fountain, you can dig a small pit and lay it out with a decorative stone. Or you can use ready-made bowls, which are also dug into the ground or installed above its surface. And you can decorate such a reservoir with artificial plants or sculptures, and you can always plant beautiful flowers near the fountain. To decorate the fountain (and the pond too!), You can use special landscape lighting, and then it will delight you at night. Lighting devices used for reservoirs can be floating and underwater, and they can be installed either permanently or in a floating lamp system at different depths. To scatter light, they are equipped with reflectors, and the materials from which they are made are resistant to temperature changes and the effects of atmospheric precipitation. In a word, to equip a fountain, to dig a pond in the country with your own hands, or to hire specialists for this - it's up to you. It is important to remember that once dug and planted with plants, a pond will require constant attention and care from you. If you are ready not only for the construction of the pond, but also for further maintenance of it, then choose a place, create a project, purchase the necessary materials, and proceed. It is difficult to make a pond on the site with your own hands, but it is quite possible! As they say, there would be a desire, but there will be opportunities. Good luck!
