Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, March 11, 1994 TAG: 9403140116
SECTION: LAWN & GARDEN PAGE: 12 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BETSY BIESENBACH STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
But there was no way Danco, who gets restless in the winter when there is no gardening to do, could stop thinking of ways to improve on what she had. So she decided to put a water garden in her back yard.
"I thought it would be nice to hear the sound of water running," she said.
Danco decided to do the project herself rather than call a contractor. Because of her gardening experience, she already knew what she wanted. She decided against using a preformed fiberglass shell for the pond.
"I have to have my own original shape," she said.
So she drafted her husband, Bill, her son, Douglas, and a friend to do the heavy work. "I kept the lemonade coming," she said.
Digging the bed for the 10-by-15-foot pool was "quite an undertaking. They were getting a little tired at the end."
But Bill Danco is an engineer, and he found the work a challenge. The yard is hilly, she said, and the No. 1 rule for installing a pond is making sure it's level. If it's not, she said, "it looks funny" and soil can wash into the water during a hard rain and contaminate it.
Before the digging started, Danco carefully located the best spot in her yard for the pond. It had to have six to eight hours of sunlight each day for the plants to grow properly, and it had to be built away from any deciduous trees that might drop their leaves into the water during the fall.
"Building a pond is not something you want to do without thinking about it. It's a lot more than digging a hole and putting water in it," she said.
In planning the project, Danco researched it carefully to learn all she could about water plants and about creating a balanced environment. Besides reading books, she attended several seminars and talked with friends who already had water gardens.
The digging began in May 1992, and it took most of the summer to finish the 1,000-gallon pond. But it was worth the effort, Danco said, because not only did she get the design she wanted, but all of her costs were in the materials, which consisted of the rubber liners, the pump and the plants and fish. The finished project came in at around $2,000, with the pump and the liner being the most expensive components.
When the time came to order her supplies, they were hard to find in Roanoke. In the past year and a half, however, it's been a little easier for her to get what she needs. "There's more interest now," she said.
Besides the main pond, which is 18 inches deep on one side and 20 inches deep on the other, the garden also features an upper pond from which a waterfall cascades down over a series of rocks.
"I wanted a natural look," Danco said, but getting it took a lot of work. Placing the rocks so that the water flows properly "looks easy, but it's not," she said. A stand of reeds around the edge of the pond adds to the natural effect.
After the project was finished, Bill Danco built a fence behind the upper pond to provide a dramatic backdrop for the entire water garden.
In the winter, Marian Danco has to bring some of the less hardy plants indoors. Those that stay outside either die or go dormant, while the fish hibernate under the frozen water. The garden comes to life again at the end of April or the beginning of May and the colorful water lilies bloom all through the summer.
Although the pond is home to a small school of goldfish, they are not the main attraction, she said.
"I built this pond so that I could grow water-loving plants," Danco said. Although she had no prior experience with them, she said, "I'm not afraid to try things." As it turns out, "anybody can grow these plants."
If there are any drawbacks to having a water garden, Danco said, "I haven't found them."
The pond seems to be as attractive to animals as it is to humans. Although Danco decided against putting Koi in the pond because they tend to root up the plants on the bottom, the goldfish seem to be good enough to attract the attention of the neighborhood cats.
Danco said she has seen them in the yard, but the floating plants provide places for the fish to hide safely. Some people sink a mesh screen just below the surface to thwart would-be predators, but it also prevents the fish from coming to the top of the water.
Several frogs have taken up residence in Danco's pond, and birds and dragonflies are frequent visitors.
The pond is lighted at night, but because the pump circulates the water every two hours and keeps it moving, there is no problem with annoying insects. Those that do show up get eaten by the fish.
"It's so restful to sit over there," Danco said.
by CNB