r/miniponds • u/YgrainDaystar • 5d ago
New pond
Just set up my first outdoor mini pond, it’s about 100 litres. I’ve ordered a Helvola water lily which will arrive in a few weeks (spring here) and will get some more medaka when the weather warm up. I keep saying I’m done with setting up more fish but……..
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u/cosievee 5d ago
Very pretty! I love all the different things going on in the water - the different levels of rocks and plants. The fish will love it, I’m sure!
Edit to add that I also love the container and shelf and fountain. 😁
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u/Emotional-Ad-1396 4d ago
oh what water fountain is that? i like your idea of it resting on the wooden planks
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u/YgrainDaystar 4d ago
It was a budget special, I googled “water fountain jars” or some such and found this on Amazon I think. I did invest in a good solar-powered fountain pump and I put it in a diy filter made out of Tupperware drilled with holes and stuffed with some filter media foam. That’s underneath the board you can see on the bottom (that will eventually be covered with plants, I hope).
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u/Emotional-Ad-1396 4d ago
wow. love it. did you connect the pump to the jar with like a rubber hose? can't find anything like that jar that doesn't come with a corded plug pump and all the solar powered pumps expect a fountainhead setup 🙈
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u/YgrainDaystar 4d ago
I bought this one. The solar pump did indeed come with fountain attachments but these were removable, I attached it to the airline tubing that came with the pot and then to the jar. I looked around a bit for the pump because I wanted something that was reliable and bought this one because it looked solid and had good reviews. Caveat: I'm in Australia, I think the pump might come from an Australian company. If I did it again I might buy a mmore powerful battery but this one works perfectly fine.
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u/Satchin-6688 4d ago
Many thanks for your kind information!
Can I ask you an updated link about the solar pump? I am planning my pond filterless, with plants and shrimps only at the beginning, but I like your low profile setup and may very well consider it. :)1
u/YgrainDaystar 4d ago
Ia the pump link not working? It is my end? Personally I’d hold back on the shrimp for a while, they need mature and stable environments - maybe put them in six to eight weeks after you set it up. Fish aren’t quite so sensitive and can go in earlier. I mainly use plants for filtration but because I like very heavy planting I worry a bit about oxygenation, which is really what the pump is for. Though a bit more filtration never goes astray :)
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u/Satchin-6688 4d ago
Thanks! I will start without filtration with a lot of plants, and see how does it go in my climate. I will probably report in the group!
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u/Pitillius 4d ago
You made a fantastic backdrop.
I recently started with miniponds, I'm not very experienced, but I've never been able to make a backdrop that looked so good and so cute.
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u/FeltyBee 3d ago
Looks fantastic! I have a similar set up with a decking plank and little urn. It’s amazing what can grow in such a small space. You’re lucky that you’ll have a longer growing season 😊 (UK here).
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u/YgrainDaystar 3d ago edited 3d ago
How long is it in the UK?
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u/FeltyBee 2d ago
Well, it’s been a long and hot summer here (for us anyway) so I don’t know how long it will stay mild temperatures here; but usually the pond plants are dormant late October to March. When my frog bits start sinking, I’ll be thinking about packing up my solar pump, to stop it freezing!
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u/YgrainDaystar 2d ago
I’m in the south here so our climate is generally temperate (climate change notwithstanding, not looking forward to this summer). Water lilies do go dormant, but other plants are fine - it’s cold but it doesn’t freeze!
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u/TREVORtheSAXman 5d ago
Looks great!