Tuesday, September 18, 2012

how to build a small pond in 10 easy steps

Wait until it rains a lot.
Then find a spot in the grass that is beyond squishy (aka, a spring).
Stomp on it in front of the dog and let him have at it.

Observe the awesome power of water.

Get distracted by the faltering rose bushes.

Realize that they're not done blooming yet.

Get real muddy digging. (And make a note to do some laundry tomorrow.)

Save all the rocks you found for a future waterfall and edge liner.

Make sure you don't upset your spring.

Give the dog a kiss.

Introduce him to his new watering trough.

Eat some killer potato chips and drink some whiskey! A good day!

6 comments:

  1. Haha!

    I actually taught my dog to dig on command a couple of years ago (after working on an excavation in the Caucasus where pigs kept moving our dirt pile, and we came up with the idea of 'archaeology pigs' - I just took it one step further). We've been talking about making a pond "in a few years" and we have been joking about having the dog dig it. ;)

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    1. I did read previously about how pigs are good for compacting the soil to form the bottom of a pond -- we have some other spots on the property where that may work out well for water catchment (once we get some piggies, that is). Unfortunately, my mini pond dried up this afternoon after a beautifully sunny but crisp day, but I suspect that it may serve as a watering trough like I intended once the rains start coming more regularly! If anything, it will serve as an occasional wildlife habitat as I plan to put in some plant species that like soggy, mucky conditions like that. :)

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  2. I love your dog! He is beautiful :D
    Your quick pond is awesome! We could have done this to our whole backyard a few weeks ago >.<

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    1. Thanks! He's a good boy and has adapted very well to homesteading life. :)

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  3. I found a link to your site on Anna's site today. So far this my favorite post, I will spend some more time checking things out later. Do you have an about page or the like that I can check out?

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    1. Thanks, Dave! Mark and Anna are hella cool people -- so glad to have discovered them out here. Check out the "we, the mountainsteaders" link at the top right of the page... :)

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