NCGW Things to do
Make a Mini Pond
Create a small haven for wildlife in your garden
This activity was created by Wildlife World!
Did you know, that providing a pond is one of the most worthwhile and effective things you can do to encourage and care for wildlife in your own back garden?
A wildlife pond provides breeding habitat for toads, dragonflies and damselflies, a vital source of hydration for pollinators, insects and hedgehogs, and somewhere for diving beetles, water scorpions, pond skaters, newts and frogs to live. Sadly, over the last 50 years or so, it is thought that more than a third of all UK ponds have disappeared. Leading to habitat loss and fewer breeding spaces across the country.
Here’s what you’ll need!
What you’ll need!
- A spade
- Small stones or gravel
- Bigger stones or rocks
- Pond plants
- Plants for around the edges
- A spare container the size of the pond you want to create. This can be a washing up bowl, an old plant pot (no holes) or a plastic storage container. Make sure this is clean!
Instructions:
- First, collect some rainwater using a water butt, or alternatively decant some tap water into a container and leave it outside for a few days for the chlorine levels to reduce.
- Look for an unshaded, sunny spot in your garden, free from falling leaves. This is where you’ll dig your hole
- Dig your hole, this must be big enough to fit your container, ideally not too sunken into the ground.
- Start by placing your small stones and gravel at the foot of your container followed by your larger rocks in the corners. If your water isn’t in the container, you can introduce it now.
- Now, it is important to your wildlife that you ensure that anything that falls in, such as a hedgehog, will be able to climb back out. This can be done with a log or branch, placed across the pond.
- Introduce your pond plants, this is to oxygenise the water, which is crucial for life to take hold. Further to this, plant native plants around the edges of your pond to give shade and support bug life.
