Adding water to your garden brings life in a way that is incomparable with any other. Whether you want still water that acts as a mirror reflecting the moving clouds tracking across the summer sky, or moving water to add sound and energy to a space, incorporating water is always a positive for both human enjoyment and for wildlife. Here’s our little guide to designing water into your garden.

A pond is perhaps the first thing that comes to mind, when water is discussed for a garden. Whether small or large, a pond almost instantly connects your garden to the network of wild and gardened spaces around you, inviting in wildlife such as frogs, newts, waterboatmen and dragonflies. When siting a pond in your garden it’s important to consider how much light and shade there is in the space, whether there are overhanging trees (or tree roots underground where you’re intending to dig out) to contend with, and how safe it will be for any young visitors to your garden.

In order to avoid creating a stagnant puddle, it’s best to incorporate moving water of some kind in a pond, to recirculate the water and introduce fresh oxygen. So consider how to get an electrical connection to the necessary pond pump, and how to hide any equipment so the area still feels as natural as possible.

Any wildlife pond needs safe ways for creatures to climb out of the water – a steeply sided pond can be a trap for hedgehogs for example. Incorporating a shallow beach area with pebbles or gravel is a perfect way to allow creatures an easy escape if they fall into your pond.

Larger ponds can include fish, aquatic planting, decks and jetties, the possibilities are endless. Planning from the outset for all the required elements is sensible, to ensure you’re creating the right depth of pond for your preferred plants, fish or wildlife, preferably with underwater shelves at different levels to suit marginal plants that enjoy living at different depths.

Formal water features such as a raised fish pond, fountain or rill are popular with clients who like to bring water close to the house. A raised pond brings the water closer to eye level and makes a stunning feature in this hillside garden, which includes fish and a small fountain to recirculate the water and keep it clean. A small selection of water plants can be included – here we used mini water lilies and Pontederia – but the idea is to keep visible water and not overly congest the space. A clean, stone coping invites the garden owner and visitors to perch on the sides of the feature, to enjoy its sound, watch the fish, and see the water sparkling in the sunshine, from close up.

A rill is simply a long thin formal pond, normally at ground level, which can cut through paving or planting, to add drama to a space. Adding steps or drops to a rill adds even further drama, with the very shallow water a safe and attractive addition to any garden.

Self contained water features are available as an off the shelf purchase, virtually as a plug and play solution. They must however be chosen with care – the market is full of tacky and low quality features – but there are a few available that feature natural materials used in a simple and stylish way. Self contained water features typically include the above ground feature, an underground reservoir and an underwater pump, so all that needs to be done is dig an appropriate sized hole for the reservoir, hook it up to power, add water and cover the surface of the reservoir with gravel or pebbles to hide it from view. These kinds of features do require some annual maintenance however, to remove any algae or debris collected over winter for example, so they are not completely fuss free. Nor do they typically include any features such as automatic top up, so you need to keep an eye on them so that they don’t run dry and burn the pump out.

We chose this sleek slate water feature for this small garden to add movement and sparkle as the sun catches the water as bubbles up and moves over the sphere. It’s centrally positioned in front of the clients’ french windows, to create a statement and a point of interest year round. The cantilever bench nearby draws in visitors to sit by the water feature, enjoy the sound, and even cool off on hot summer days by running fingers across its surface.

Bespoke water features can add a personalised touch to any garden. In this case, our client was keen on a copper water fountain from the beginning of the design process, and we worked with them to help source and specify the perfect fountain, adjusting plans to incorporate the underground reservoir, and suggesting a mix of cobbles and pebbles to cover the base and set it into the context of the flowerbed. Adding lighting helps to increase the enjoyment of the sculpture, enjoyable from within the courtyard space, the wider garden and viewed from inside the house.

On other projects, we have designed complex multi-tiered rills, playful jets, streams, fountains, zinc, powder-coated steel and corTen steel water features to suit the client’s brief – there is no limit to what can be achieved providing there is sufficient budget and desire to create something truly unique for your garden project. Get in touch with Chiltern Garden Design to discuss how to incorporate water into your garden design.