You know that project that you have been meaning to get round to and winks at you every day as you pass it nagging you to tackle it?

That was my small pond area, well I say it’s a small pond area, you wouldn’t actually know it was a pond at all as it had completely reverted back to nature with the irises and grasses taking it over completely.

Well I’m amazed and pleased to say I have finally tackled it.

I did have to rope in a bit of man power (The Garden Guy based in Conyer) as the roots of the irises alone weighed so much I couldn’t lift them.

Then once cleared, we made a smaller, slightly higher pond, which we filled with large pebbles to create a rock pool.

We already had a collection of large green sand stones which had been hidden under all the overgrown plants, these stones have interesting holes made from glacial melt water, very useful when you want to run a hose through them to create a trickling waterfall.

It was certainly a big job, but as you can see below, gives us a much better view from our patio area.

Maintaining your pond:

Autumn is the best time to clean ponds as in late autumn creatures are less active.

Ponds overgrown with plants and weeds can be unhealthy for fish and other wildlife so the occasional cleaning is a good idea.

Start by preparing a holding tank in a shady spot for fish and deep-water plants; use some pond water in the tank.

The easiest way to drain the pond is to use a pump, which you can rent for the day from a machinery hire shop. As the water level falls, remove any fish and remove, re-pot or divide any plants if necessary.

Scoop up the silt from the base of the pond and put it on your border, but retain a little to add back to the pond as it will help re-establish tiny organisms.

Clean the liner with a brush, taking the dirty water out with a bucket.

Return the saved silt and any saved pond water. Next, refill with water, rain water if possible, repositioning pond plants as you go.

Finish by returning the fish and any other creatures. It will take several months to return to a balanced ecosystem.