One of the biggest challenges in water gardening is keeping the water almost as clear as crystal.  Gardening water that is actually crystal clear probably has chemical or mineral pollutants in it.  Ideally the water should be slightly brown or green.

When you first fill your pond with a hose, you will have the crystal gardening water you don’t want.  Call your local water authority and find out what chemicals are in the municipal water supply.  Allowing the crystal gardening water that comes from your tap to stand for a few days will let most of the chlorine dissipate.  But you need chemicals to treat chlorine dioxide and chloramines.  Pond supply dealers, garden suppliers and pet stores have kits you can use to test your crystal gardening water for unwanted substances.  The dealers in those stores can advise you on treatment.  Do not, however, use chemicals unless it is absolutely necessary.  Do not put your plants and fish into crystal clear gardening water until after you have removed the chloramines.

Once you are rid of the unwanted substances, introduce the plants.  They will begin the job of producing the food and oxygen that fish and other aquatic animals will need.  They will also prevent the build-up of algae.  The water will turn green, but it will clear up in a few weeks as the plants establish themselves.  Then you will have the almost crystal gardening water that is the best habitat for your plants and fish.  Now you can introduce fish, snails, and whatever other pond dwellers you wish.

It is natural for your water garden to have some algae in it.  The mossy algae that grow on the side of the pond are actually beneficial, as they remove toxins from the water.  But algae must not be allowed to grow unchecked.  If they do, they will starve submerged plants by depriving them of nutrients.  This in turn will deprive fish and other aquatic animals of oxygen, and they will die.  Algae growth also makes your pond look unattractive.

You can control the growth of algae by putting in water lilies and other floating plants.  They consume the nutrients that algae live on, and block out the sunlight algae require for growth.  Snails and some fish help by eating algae.

If at all possible, keep algae growth under control by those natural means.  You can also skim algae off the surface with a fine mesh net, a brush or a rake.  It can also help to install one or two filters.  If you must use chemicals, remember that is only a temporary solution, and one that could be harmful to your plants and fish.

Have you always wanted to take the outdoors inside? Well now you can with indoor water gardening. Not only does water add beauty to a home, it also helps to create a calming environment. The sound of running water has long been considered a source of relaxation. Setting up an indoor water gardening environment inside your home can be cheap and simple with minimal time investment.

To begin designing and setting up your indoor water gardening element inside your home you will need the following:

•    The container to build the garden in
Here you are limited only by your imagination. Just about any container that is non-porous can be used. Some suggestions are: fish tank, plastic buckets, wooden cask, ceramic bowls, glass baking tins.
•    Plants to grow
The choice of aquatic plants suitable for indoor water gardening is varied. Some good choices especially for the beginner include water lettuce, water chestnuts, eelgrass, water ferns and water clover. A mix of floating and rooted aquatic plants can add contrast and style to your water garden.
•    Growing medium
This also varies and is partially dependent on what types of plants you plan on putting into your water garden.

How to care for your indoor water garden

Caring for your indoor water gardening creation is simple and best of all, not time-consuming. Maintaining an indoor water garden is similar to caring for an outdoor one. Dead plants and fish waste (if you decide to go all out and add fish to your creation) must be cleaned out regularly to keep the ‘pond’ looking good.

You will also need to add water occasionally to replace what is lost due to evaporation. It is important to not just pour water into the container as doing so will do more harm that good. The proper technique for adding water is to pour it slowly, using your hand or the side of the container to break the flow. Also, leave the water standing around for an hour or so to allow it to reach room temperature as cold water can shock the plants in the container.

Using a nutrient degrader will help minimize the build up in your indoor water gardening environment. Controlling algae buildup is necessary for maintaining the health of the plants in the container as well as ensuring that the entire creation looks attractive.

Finally you need to decide on how best to show off your creation. One way is to introduce artificial lighting into the indoor water gardening setting. Alternatively, the container can be placed where adequate, but indirect sunlight can do the trick of highlighting the beauty of the garden. 

One thing, of course, is essential to successful water gardening: pond water.  Some water gardeners claim that they let their ponds go for years without paying any attention to water quality or environmental conditions.  Most experts on gardening pond water say such negligence is bound to lead to disaster, especially if the pond is home to fish and other aquatic animals.

If you keep your artificial pond well maintained, you should need to drain and clean it only once every three or four years.  By being observant, you can spot the symptoms of some gardening pond water problems and take correctional measures.  If the water level keeps dropping, there may be a leak in the liner.  If the gardening pond water stays green well into summer, there is too much debris on the bottom.  Remove it and add more floating-leaved plants and oxygenating plants to the pond.  If the gardening pond water turns black or has a bad odour, the oxygen content is too low.  You can correct this with water from a garden hose.  It might be a good idea to install an aerator.

If you must drain and clean your pond, the best time is late summer or early autumn.  Doing it in spring or early summer is very disruptive to the natural cycles of both plants and pond animals.  Be sure to have all tools and materials on hand before you start, so as to cause the least amount of trauma to pond animals.  You will need plastic buckets, holding tanks (plastic garbage pails or a child’s wading pool), fish nets, a plastic dustpan, siphoning hose or pump, newspaper or burlap, a soft bristled brush, a thermometer, and a water purifier or dechlorinating agent.

Drain the pond to a depth of six inches, then gently catch fish and other pond animals and put them in the holding tank.  The tank should contain pond water.  Keep the tank in the shade.  Wrap the pond plants in wet newspaper or burlap.  Keep them shaded and moist.  Drain or bail the rest of the water.  Pick out as many snails as you can find and put them in the holding tank.  Scoop the silt from the pond with the plastic dustpan.  Use the hose and soft bristled brush to clean the bottom and sides of the pond.  Do not use any chemical cleaning agents.  Check the liner for leaks.

Refill the pond with fresh water.  Use a water purifier or dechlorinating agent (unless you’re using well water).  Pour a few buckets of the old pond water back into the pond.  This will re-introduce necessary organisms.  Put the plants back into the pond, but do not put fish or other animals in until the water temperature is within five degrees of the water in the holding tank.  Your gardening pond water should now be good for the next three or four years.

Is there any element in nature that can be as simultaneously soothing and dramatic as water?  Most people love to hear the roar of a waterfall, the laughter of water tumbling over rocks or splashing in a fountain, and the murmuring noise of a small stream.  They love to see the sparkle of sunlight on falling water as it makes each droplet a tiny prism, the rippling effect of the wind across the surface of a pool, and the reflections cast by still water when there is hardly a breeze.

For these and many other reasons, water gardening is one of the most challenging and rewarding forms of horticulture.  And even though as far as modern horticulture is concerned water gardening is a relatively new art, the practice does in fact go far back in history.  The ancient Mesopotamians, Egyptians, Greeks and Romans, as well as the rulers of Arabia and China all used water gardening to beautify their homes, palaces, places of worship and important public areas.  They cultivated exotic plants and sometimes stocked their pools with beautifully coloured fish.

But in those long gone days only the very rich could enjoy water gardens.  Slaves usually did the actual work of water gardening, which frequently involved hauling great quantities of water.  There wasn’t always a natural spring to keep the fountain gushing in a sultan’s cool, shady courtyard.

Thanks to twenty-first century technology, however, a far greater number of people can share the pleasures of water gardening.  Most people, of course, cannot replicate the grand water gardens of a Caesar or a Chinese emperor, but they can have a garden on a less ostentatious scale that is just as beautiful and provides an equal measure of joy.

Your water garden can take on many different forms.  You can build it around or adjacent to a naturally occurring wet area on your property, such as a spring, brook or marsh.  Or you can use an artificially constructed pool or fountain as the focal point of your water garden.  You can adorn your water garden from a vast array of flowers, shrubs and trees.  You can also have an aesthetically pleasing water garden that has no plants at all.  You can add fish to your pool if you desire.  Or you can attract birds, butterflies and other living things to your water garden by the selection of certain species of flora or the placing of feeders.  You can decorate your water garden with statuary, or enhance it with stonework.  Whatever your choices, water gardening will provide you with the means to be at your creative best, and a place of tranquil beauty for you to enjoy.