Water is an attractive and popular design element in the garden because it has a relaxing effect and is an eye-catcher. While a few years ago ponds and fountains, in particular, adorned numerous plots of land, today the possibilities are much more diverse. These range from straight waterfalls to mini ponds in-wall buckets and barrels to natural pools that combine the naturalness of a pond with the simplicity of a swimming pool. What is important for garden design with water and what creative ideas are there?
Garden designs with water – variants for outdoor water systems
Apart from the material you need to build the pond, water feature, or pool, the supply of water is an important question to deal with. This is necessary not only for the initial replenishment but also for refilling because the water level will decrease over time due to solar radiation and wind. There are various outdoor water systems to choose from, which many garden owners have already installed or which can be retrofitted for this purpose.
Water Butt
A very convenient and inexpensive way to supply the garden with water is to set up a rain barrel. This collects the water from the rain gutter, which is not discharged into the sewage system and which you can instead remove from the bin with a watering can or a pump. The larger your garden is or the more liters your water design needs, the larger the rain barrel should be. Alternatively, several rainwater storage tanks can be set up, for example, on two sides of the house.
Advantages:
+ cost-effective water supply
+ relatively cheap to buy
+ decorative models available, for example in wooden barrel or fountain look
Disadvantages:
– limited water storage
– shady location recommended, otherwise evaporation risk is relatively high
– must be emptied before winter
– Algae and bacteria formation are possible
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Cistern
In principle, it is a permanently installed variant of the rain barrel, which is made of concrete or plastic, is buried in the ground and also to which the downpipe of the rain gutter is connected. However, cisterns can collect significantly more water and are therefore very suitable for large plots and water designs. You can also use these for the water supply in the house (e.B. for flushing the toilet).
Advantages:
+ cost-effective supply by collecting rainwater
+ relatively clean water due to special filter system on the downpipe or on the cistern directly
+ large water tanks possible
+ no bacteria or algae formation, because the cistern is installed in the cool soil
+ therefore no frost protection is necessary
Disadvantages:
– a hole must be dug for installation
– Concrete cistern must be placed with the help of a crane
– depending on the model quite high acquisition costs
– a pump is required for water conveyance
Faucet
The easiest way to irrigate a garden or fill a pond is to supply water via an outdoor faucet, to which you can connect a commercial hose with the help of a suitable adapter. If none is yet available, it is possible to retrofit a faucet, which is available for different wall thicknesses. Please note, however, that frost resistance must be ensured in winter to prevent damage to the domestic water system. On the one hand, this is possible by emptying the water pipe and the faucet. On the other hand, modern exterior fittings are already frost-proof thanks to a valve located inside the house. Specialist dealers such as this one offer these as durable stainless steel models that are corrosion-resistant and highly resilient. Thus, it is also unproblematic if you want to fill a large basin with several 1,000 liters and the water has to run permanently for a longer period of time. To ensure that the exterior faucet matches the look of the building, various designs are available from classic variants to nostalgic dragon shapes to modern stand models.
Advantages:
+ unlimited water available at any time
+ very fast and convenient removal
+ very clean water
Disadvantages:
– high costs if large quantities are removed
– in autumn, the tap must be turned off if it does not have frost protection
– if necessary, the valve must first be installed
Garden designs with water – from the miniature pond to the water feature to the natural pool
An old wooden barrel offers many design possibilities, one of which is the use as a miniature pond. In order for it to be one hundred percent tight, it is advised to put a pond foil in it or to place a suitable plastic container in the barrel. Then position stones of different heights on the ground to place the aquatic plants on them. Floating plants such as water hyacinths, frog bites, or mussel flowers are also very suitable for such mini ponds. You can also realize this design option with a clean mortar bucket, a barrel, or another container.
Garden design with water – water feature
In addition to the classic fountain or the natural variant with a large spring stone, very modern and individual water features in the garden are also possible today. Columns or walls that have a spout at one point over which the water runs down into a basin look very puristic. This design option is suitable, for example, on a terrace, on the house wall, in the front garden or between two gabions as an extraordinary property demarcation. You can either design the water feature yourself with a waterfall element that you wall in or buy it as a finished element.
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Natural pool
In recent years, a fusion of pool and pond has become very popular among garden owners. The so-called swimming pond offers bathing pleasure through the clear water and is with numerous plants at the same time a natural paradise, which is beautiful to look at and offers a lot of relaxation. Important in the natural pool is the so-called filter or regeneration zone, which primarily consists of several layers of gravel of different grain sizes and aquatic plants. This is also where the technology that filters the impurities out of the water is located. Depending on the size of the plot and preferences, the swimming pond can either integrate naturally into the garden or have a square shape that makes it look even more like a pool. It is also possible to use it to intercept the sloping property area. For this purpose, all exteriors are bricked, for example, with concrete oral blocks. The location of the natural pool in the garden is very variable, as it can connect directly to a terrace or be located in a more secluded corner of the property where you can set up an oasis of peace with a sun deck and perhaps a sauna and hot tub.