We always had ponds when we were in the UK, and moving to southern Spain with it’s renowned lack of water made us want to continue with our water gardening hobby, just so we could hear the trickle of it on a hot summers day.

Our 2 sons, Ben and Nick, dug the area down by about 3 feet and then added the foundation. It was built up above ground level by about 2 feet and lined with plastic. The finished wall and backdrop have  a lovely rustic granite surface, which sparkles in the sun light.

The fish have bred every year, some years in their hundreds. We usually catch most of the babies and swap them for animal feed at the local pet store.

We struggled with green water for a couple of years, but then Ben made his own filter using a large black water barrel. We made bags from the mosquito netting and then filled them with gravel. We also added a roof to the pergola which is built around the sitting area. As a result, we have beautiful clear water all year round and can always see right to the bottom of the deepest areas.

We have struggled keeping water plants here, particularly as the Koi are now so big and do like to uproot them and eat them. A couple of years ago however, we found a plant growing wild and brought a small piece back home. It is a Large Umbrella Palm ‘Cyperus Alternifolis’….. and Nick regularly bends the heads down into the water and lets them root and then re-pots them. We currently have a number of them ready for sale and hope to take them to the local gardening club and sell some.

The pump we have in the pond is quite a large one, and the filter has to be cleaned regularly. As with most things here, we try to re-use as much as we can and the dirty water that we have after cleaning the pond filter is fabulous food for the crops and garden plants.