Today’s post is also available at polka dot suitcase, a great blog about finding fun in everyday life.

Rembrandt Water Lily in bloom

Our Rose Arrey Water Lily beat it by two days, but the Rembrandt Water Lily made up for its tardiness by producing two blooms at once. We’ve now got three water lilies in full blooms, and dozens of flower buds that will begin to flower in the next few days and weeks. It’s looks like it will be a great year for water lily blossoms here. Can’t wait!

Rembrandt is an easy water lily, making it a great choice for just about any pond. The outer petals are a delicate pink while the inner petals turn a deep crimsom (easier to see in this photograph). Not only is the Rembrandt Water Lily attractive and forgiving, it is also one of the few water lilies that will flower in part shade.  If your pond — like ours — is surrounded by trees, Rembrandt might be a good choice.

Yellow Iris in bloom

Yellow Iris is usually a summertime bloomer, but we have one clump that has been blooming for almost two weeks already. Not really sure why, but these yellow iris is just really enthusiastic this year. It’s been especially hot and wet, so possibly everything will bloom early for us this season?

We have clumps of iris scattered in and around our ponds, but this particular plant is growing in our shallow artificial stream. The stream is only a few inches deep, and freezes solid every winter. This iris must be tough as nails, because it returns bigger and better every spring. This plant — along with a healthy clump of lizard tail and cattail — doesn’t seem to mind when it’s roots freeze solid.

None of our other iris plants have begun to bloom yet, so we could be looking at an especially long flower season for iris this year. Nice!

rose arrey water lily

The first day of June, and we are celebrating our first water lily blossom of the season. Our little display pond has more than a dozen water lilies, and Rose Arrey beat all the others to claim the first blossom for 2009.

It looks like our second, third and fourth blooms won’t be far behind — there are an awful lot of flower buds floating just below the water surface.

Rose Arrey is one of our favorite water lilies. Not only is it an early bloomer, but it is extremely adaptable. This tough little water lily does fine in shallow water, but will still blooms in when planted in water that is five feet deep. Maybe deeper too?

As an added bonus, Rose Arrey is one of the few hardy water lilies with a noticeable fragrance. What’s not to like?

Four leaf water clover is a fun and playful ground cover that will love the boggy areas of your yard.

It’s raining in Virginia today, and the water is beginning to puddle in the low areas around our property. You probably notice the same thing in your yard — just about every lawn or garden has a low area that gathers water and grows puddles when it rains. Maybe the puddle lasts for days, and the soil always seems a little soggy? If so, don’t fight it. You’ve got the perfect place to plant marginal pond plants, which thrive in shallow water or boggy soil.

Marginal pond plants — also called bog plants — include many of our favorite choices for bright flowers or dramatic foliage. If you want flowers, try any of our iris or canna lilies. Elephant ear (also known as taro) are a great choice for dramatic foliage, and pitcher plants and fly catchers make excellent conversation starters. But these are just a few of your options for your soggy, boggy, puddle-filled lawns. As you browse our selection of marginal plants, be sure to check the planting depth in the plant description. Any plant that specifies a depth of 0 inches, or moist or dry soil, will do great.

With a little creativity you can turn a puddle-prone eye-sore into a thriving and low maintenance bog garden. Need more encouragement? With your plants growing there, you’ll never again accidentally step in that puddle!

1. Select a location. Container water gardens can go just about anywhere you like, indoors or out. But, no matter where you choose, you’ll want a spot that is fairly level. Full-sun is best, but part-shade will be fine for many aquatic plants.
2. Pick your container. Glazed pots are an easy choice, but anything that holds water will work. One of the best container water gardens I ever saw was in an old claw-foot bath tub. Be creative and have fun.
3. Water-proof the container. If you aren’t sure about water-tightness, simply fill the container with water and let it sit a day or two. Use water-proof putty or epoxy (available at any hardware store) to seal any cracks or drainage holes. Let dry overnight.
4. Place and level the container. Remember, water always levels itself. So unless you want an off-tilter look, you’ll want your container sitting as level as possible. Use flat stones, pebbles or dirt to level the base. For best results, use a carpenter’s level.
5. Add gravel, pebbles or soil (optional). If you want the hide the bottom of the container, now is the time to add your bottom substrate. Be creative: sand, gravel, pebbles, marbles and more will all work. This is also a great time to add larger decorative rocks or stones.
6. Add a pump, filter or fountain (optional). Generally, pumps and filters are not necessary for small container gardens. But, the effect of moving water can be very pleasing. If you enjoy the sound of moving water, or want to add a small fountain, then now is the time to add the pump.  Pumps are also a good idea if you want to keep a few fish.
7. Prepare your plants. If you haven’t already, pick out some fun pond plants for your container water garden. Almost any water plant will thrive in a container. If your plants are bare-root, just trim their roots and pot them in plastic pond plant containers. Garden soil works fine. If your plants are already potted, simply check to see if their roots are growing out of the container. If they are, you may want to repot them in a larger container. Visit our website for a few more tips on potting your pond plants.
8. Add your plants. Most aquatic plants want to be set 4 to 12 inches below the surface, although lilies and lotus are happy in deeper water too. If the container is deep, you can add bricks or stones to support the plants, bringing their pots closer to the surface.
9. Add water. Slowly fill the container, being careful to avoid tipping your plants or disturbing the substrate.
10. Enjoy!

Today’s post is also available at polka dot suitcase, a great blog about finding fun in everyday life.

1. 

   Arc-en-Ciel water lily

   Arc-en-Ciel Water Lily. Most water lilies want full sun, and will sulk and waste away if they don’t get what they want. But, Arc-en-Ciel is a lovely lily that is perfectly happy in the shade. The pale pink flowers and striking mottled leaves will brighten up any shaded pond. Rembrand water lilies, chromatella water lilies, odorata water lilies, Joey Tomocik water lilies, Texas dawn water lilies and Colorado peach water lilies are also happy in part shade.

2. Horsetail Rush. If you want something different, horsetail rush is the plant for you. The rigidly vertical leaves are ridged and regularly jointed, and provide an excellent backdrop for more delicate pond plants. And, if you are looking for a conversation starter: horsetail rush’s relatives were around in the days of the dinosaurs. Read our full post on horsetail rush for more information.
3. Blue Pickerel Reed. Brighten up any shady spot with these lavender-blue flowers and tropical-green leaves. A North American native, blue pickerel reed will thrive just about anywhere. And, if white flowers are more your style, try white pickerel reed.
4. President Canna Lily. Add a bold splash of red to your shaded area with the President canna lily.
5. 

   black magic taro

   Black Magic Taro, aka Black Magic Elephant Ear. All the taros and elephant ears are happy in the shade. In fact, these playful plants are happiest with a little protection from the hot sun. Every taro is a good choice, but the purple-black leaves of black magic taro makes it our favorite.

6. Lizard’s Tail. This American native will quickly establish in shaded areas, filling in dark corners and providing a great background for other plants. The white flower stalks are present on lizard’s tail throughout most of the summer. Read our full blog post on lizard’s tail for more information.
7. Cardinal Flower. This isn’t just another red flower. Cardinal flower is a favorite of hummingbirds, and is a great way to attract these delightful birds to your pond and garden.
8. 

   white rain lily

   White Rain Lily, aka White Fairy Lily. These crocus-like white flowers bloom in the summer, long after your crocuses have disappeared for the year. White rain lily doesn’t like to be too wet, and will do best in moist soil and very shallow water.

9. Four-Leaf Clover. You’ll feel lucky all year round with four-leaf clover growing in your pond. This playful ground cover does best in shallow water, and will even establish in moist to dry soil.
10. Mondo Grass. Fill in the edges of your pond with mondo grass, a low-growing shade-lover that prefers soggy to dry soil. An excellent choice for softening the edges of your pond, and hiding the water line.

Create a koi-free zone for your water plants. Use chicken wire or heavy plastic netting to fence off an area of your pond, creating a koi-free safe zone for your pond plants. Take time to ensure that there are no holes or weak points where your koi can slip through. For best results, allow the fencing material to extend above the water’s surface an inch or two. Finally, be careful to use heavy gauge netting or fencing — the fine bird netting could catch and tangle your fishes’ fins.

If you have the space, you can take this idea one step further, and actually construct a second pond for your plants. A small pond sited above your koi pond will keep your plants safely away from the koi, and will also give you the opportunity to incorporate a waterfall or stream into your backyard water garden.

Use floating plant baskets to protect delicate floating and oxygenating plants. Empty pond plant baskets will float right at the water’s surface, creating a floating barrier between your pond plants and the hungry koi. This is a great way to combine floating plants — water hyacinth, water lettuce, frogbit, water poppy — with koi. This technique also works for submerged and oxygenating plants, such as anacharis, parrot’s feather or bacopa. Take care: aggressive koi may figure out how to tip the baskets, and water falls or fountains could flip the baskets too.

Grow koi safe pond plants. Koi will eat almost anything, but thick-stemmed water plants are generally pretty safe. Lotus, umbrella palm, cattail and other sturdy reeds and rushes can often withstand their hungry assaults. Less-aggessive koi may even let you grow water lilies. Some koi will dig up pond plant roots, so you may want to protect your plants by covering their pots with thick wire or heavy stones.

Spring isn’t the only time of the year to inspect and clean your pump. Be sure to clean or replace filter screens and pads throughout the summer and fall to keep your pump working at peak levels.

Looking for a quick way to save time and money on servicing your pumps and replacing filter material?  Keep your pond water clean by introducing anacharis and hornwort to the pond. These algae-busters help starve off green water problems by feeding on the nutrients that encourage algae blooms. If your water is free of floating green algae, your filter pads will last much longer.

We recommend adding approximately 1 bunch of submerged plants (anacharis, hornwort, cabomba and parrot’s feather are our favorites) for every 2 feet of surface area in your backyard pond. For example, if your pond is 10 feet x 10 feet, it has a surface area of 100 feet, and will need about 50 bunches of submerged plants to control green water and algae blooms. Of course, if your pond is shaded you may need less plants. And, if you have many fish, then you might need more plants (fish add nitrogen to ponds, which is another fertilizer that can lead to unwanted algae problems.

lizard tail

Lizard tail (Saururus cernuus) might also be known as water dragon, but this plant is a friendly and charming addition for backyard water gardens. Because it’s an American native, lizard tail adapts well to climates across the country. In fact, lizard tail is remarkably tough — the plant thrives in full sun to part shade, and is equally happy in moist soil to water depths of about 6 inches. Although some books say this plant won’t tolerate freezing, we’ve had ours come back reliably every spring, despite long and icy winters.

Because it’s so adaptable, you can really grow lizard tail just about anywhere in or near your pond. It’s also a great choice for seasonally boggy areas, stream beds or drainage ditches. Since lizard tail is a perennial, it will reliably come back every spring in zones 4 - 11.

lizard tail flower

Lizard tail blooms for a month or longer every summer. The tiny white flowers are borne on a slender spike, which often curves at the tip. The flowers might not be the showiest in our pond, but there’s something delightful about their understated appearance. Bees and other pollinating insects share our affection for lizard tail flowers, and visit them regularly during the summer-long blooming season.

This adaptable plant can be potted in any size planting basket, or can be allowed to establish itself freely in dirt-bottomed ponds or streams. Lizard tail is not aggressive, but it will spread — use a planting basket if you want to confine your plant to one specific area within your backyard pond.

Our favorite place for lizard tail is towards the back, or tucked into shady corners. There, the plant thrives where others wouldn’t, providing a robust green backdrop to our showier pond plants.

Visit our lizard tail product page for more information, or to order lizard tail for your pond.

First, clean your pond. Yes, it’s a dirty job, but it’s worth it: both your pond and your garden will thank you. Check for leaves that may have settled to the bottom of the pond, and siphon or net them out. Groom the edges by removing any dead foliage and leaves that could make their way into the water. Trim back any overgrown pond plants or neighboring plants and shrubs.

Got a big pile of muck and waste? Good. Add all of this to your garden compost bin or pile. If you don’t have one, now is the perfect time to begin. Simply pick an out-of-the-way spot and pile up your plant waste. As spring turns to summer, continue to add your garden clippings and vegetable waste from your kitchen. If the mood strikes, you can turn the pile every now and then with a pitchfork. Or, if you like, just sit back and wait. Even an ignored compost heap will turn into black within two years. If you take the time to turn your pile, you could have compost by the end of the summer.

No interest in a compost heap? No problem. Simply spread your pond ooze and muck around the bases of your favorite trees and shrubs. It’s not quite as nutritious as mature compost, but your plants will still get plenty of nutrients from the pond gunk.

For example, water lilies need a minimum of 4-6 hours direct sunlight to provide you with blooms throughout the season. Water lilies prefer calm water, so try to position them away from strong currents, waterfalls and skimmers.

Umbrella palms have stems that will reach 1 -3 feet above the waters surface, making them a great plant for the background or as an accent. The tall plants can also be located near skimmers, where their sturdy stems will form a living fence to help prevent surface floating plants from lodging against or slipping into the skimmer.

Duckweed and fairy moss are teeny tiny, and will still slip past the umbrella palms‘ stems into a skimmer. We contain our duckweed and fairy moss in empty planting baskets. The baskets float in the pond and are nearly invisible. Only the top edge of the basket will break the water’s surface. This minimal barrier offers just enough height to contain very small floating plants, such as duckweed and fairy moss. If your backyard pond has strong currents, the planting baskets may need to be anchored to prevent them from drifting into rough water that may cause the baskets to tip. This tip also works for larger floating plants, such as water lettuce or water hyacinth.

No matter what types of aquatic plants you choose for your water garden, always remember to think about their needs before you plant them. This will save you the trouble of relocating them later, and ensure your pond plants are sited in the best location from the very beginning.

Modern horsetail plants may be small compared to their ancestors, but they make a huge statement when planted along the edge of ponds, streams and boggy areas. Horsetail will do fine when planted a few inches below the water line, but this plant really prefers moist to dry soil, making it an excellent choice for marshy areas and pond edges.

Because horsetail is native to North America, it will do well in any water garden, and will safely over-winter through Zone 4. As with many natives, horsetail will spread over the years—if you’d like to contain this growth simply pot your plant in a plastic container.

For more information, please view our product page for horsetail rush.