Knowing key plants for ponds can help you create a new pond or improve an existing one. Permaculture, an ecological approach to sustainable design, provides a framework for choosing beneficial, multifunctional species. Planting species with multiple functions in and around ponds can greatly improve the life and productivity of a pond, benefiting you and many other creatures.
When making considerations for plants for ponds, it helps to understand that different plants provide different functions in a pond. Pond plants can be roughly divided into three main categories: submerged, emergent, and floating. Each group of these plants for ponds provides different general functions within their environment.
Submerged plants are those that are completely underwater and they help add oxygen to the water, provide cover for a variety of small animals from invertebrates to small fish.
Emergent plants are those which are rooted underwater and whose leaves and/or flowers break the surface of the water. This group provides food and cover for small fish, amphibians, birds and even small mammals.
Floating plants are those which float freely on the surface of the water. This group of plants helps provide shade for the pond during warmer times of the year (helping regulate water temperature) and also can provide a source of food for waterfowl and fish species.
Planting species from all three categories helps to create a sustainable pond ecosystem that works together to provide the most benefits for people and wildlife.
Which pond plants are the best for you and your needs is a very personal matter. Certain species of pond plants do, however, provide more functions and benefits than others. For instance, some plants can provide food, cover, nesting for wildlife as well as useful food and medicine for humans. Multifunctional species are often preferred in a permaculture system. Here are some great species from each of the three categories:
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Your pond is part of a much larger environment, which includes many species of plants and animals, hydrology, weather, soils and other elements. When you introduce a new plant or animal to that environment, it is extremely important to do so with a deep consideration for the impact this may have. Some plants for ponds are potentially hazardous to your larger local ecosystem and introducing them can be damaging to many other native species. Accidental or deliberate introductions of non-native plants to various lakes and rivers throughout the world have had powerful and sometimes, disastrous effects on the ecosystem.
Please check in with your local ecologists with Fish & Wildlife agencies regarding what species you wish to bring to your ponds. The websites for these local Fish & Wildlife Departments often have a list of potentially hazardous species, and some are even illegal to possess or transport from place to place. Please be a good steward of your local ecosystem by educating yourself further on the plants for ponds that interest you and about pond life in general.
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About the Author: Filip Tkaczyk is a periodic guest teacher at Alderleaf. He also wrote the field guide Tracks & Sign of Reptiles & Amphibians. Learn more about Filip Tkaczyk.
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