New Market, Va. -Ponds are pulling a disappearing act in water garden design.
True, you’re still seeing the standard flowing streams with their splashing waterfalls. But now some streams are flowing nowhere. They’re vanishing instead into gravel-covered or fountain-topped reservoirs that until recently would have been ponds.
Pondless gardens or “disappearing waterfalls” are all the rage these days. Pond kits, although selling well, are becoming passe, said Keith Folsom, president of Springdale Water Gardens at Greenville, Va.
“Some people are concerned about the liability issues associated with a pond, real or perceived,” Folsom said. “Then there’s the maintenance. They want a water garden but without the pond part of it. Water flows down a hillside but without replenishing a pond. It just disappears into a covered reservoir below.”
The industry focus was primarily on ponds just a couple of years ago. But water garden designers learned that many prospective buyers weren’t all that excited about keeping ponds free of algae, mosquitoes and leaves. Others didn’t have the space. Still others were worried about safety, Folsom said.
“Now you’re selling to people who want the rocks, the vegetation, the motion and all the sounds associated with a water garden. The habitat. But they also want something that flows into a closed basin, a fountain, a pot or a fixture.
“They simply don’t want the work involved. It’s a lot less effort to set one up and a lot less work to maintain without the traditional pond. Going pondless better fits the lifestyle of the busy gardener. We’re seeing a major, major increase in that product line here.”
For more information, try graystonecreations.com or naturalwaterfall.com
