Water features are a particular passion of ours at Eagleson Landscape Co. From impressive waterfalls and ponds to the smallest bubbling rock, we love helping our clients bring the beauty of water into their yards as a permanent installment. So it should come as no surprise that when Bill and Elizabeth moved to their Sheridan home 3 years ago, they began almost immediately to work on a new pond.
“Not only was the pond going to be the centerpiece of the backyard landscape, so we wanted to build it first and layer plants and other features around it, we also had to move our koi from the old pond to the new house as soon as possible,” said Bill. “We were really on a crazy work schedule to finish it. One of the challenging things about landscaping is that it is contingent on weather. We were digging the pond during Indiana’s monsoon season, and had to deal with record amounts of rain. To make things even more challenging, we found old pool foundations beneath the ground, and had to bucket the water out to keep digging.”
All of their hard work paid off. The finished pond consists of three areas—the bog area that sits furthest away from the house, the main pond that holds the koi, and the stream and waterfall connecting one to the other.
We love installing bogs because they are the perfect natural filter for water. The layers of stones, plants like cattails and water lilies, and aquablocks (a kind of glorified milk carton used to create man-made bogs) clean the water as it is pumped up from the main pond, which then flows downstream and over the waterfall to feed the fish pond.
“We have a dozen medium to large koi of all shapes, sizes and colors,” Elizabeth said, the expert on fish in the Eagleson household. “With outside ponds, you do tend to lose a few to raccoons and herons, but we’ve managed pretty well overall. Our oldest koi is 15 years old.” The pond doesn’t just house fish, though. Adding water to a landscape will often bring many forms of wildlife, including song birds, bugs like dragonflies, and if you’re lucky, turtles and frogs. “In the summer we have a symphony of bull frogs and toads out there every night croaking away around the pond,” laughed Bill. “It’s incredible to hear.”
The natural beauty of water enhances an outdoor space in unique ways. We love the wildlife it brings to our yard, and the lovely seasonal visual elements like ice formations in winter and and glassy, rippling surfaces in the warmer months. Let us know if you are interested in bringing the beauty of water into your landscape. Send us an email or give us a call at (317) 997-4803.
