Pond Water Features: More Than Just Nice to Look At!

If you are considering adding a pond to your garden, or if you are considering adding a water feature to your existing pond—ask yourself, why? Usually, the answer is based on aesthetic reasons, and there’s nothing wrong with that.  Pond water features, like waterfalls and fountains, add a distinct appeal to a water garden. But there are even more reasons to add a water feature to your pond or to include one in your design from the start. Pond water features have health benefits for:

• Pond fish
• Aquatic plants
• You!

Aeration in Ponds Keeps Fish Healthy

If your pond is stocked with fish, then those fish will love you for adding a water feature to their home.  Why?  Because, waterfalls, fountains, and spitters all agitate the surrounding water, and that motion aerates (adds oxygen to) the pond water.  A well-oxygenated pond keeps fish healthy and keeps their colors vibrant.

Plants Need Aeration in Ponds, Too!

We usually think of plants as producing oxygen for our ponds.  However, they also consume oxygen, as all living things do.  During the day, through photosynthesis, they produce far more oxygen than they consume.  At night, without sunlight for photosynthesis, oxygen production slows down, and they may begin using more oxygen than they are producing.  All of this is to say, aquatic plants, especially those that live on the bottom of a pond, benefit from aeration the same way fish do.

How Pond Water Feature Can Keep You Healthy

This is probably the most over-looked benefit to having a pond water feature.  Yet, it may be considered the most important.  Who doesn’t feel more relaxed when listening to the soothing trickle of water from a fountain, or the gentle crash of a waterfall?  Mindful meditation is a stress-reduction technique that is growing in popularity.  It is based around focusing the mind on sensory experiences, and a pond with an aesthetic water feature is the perfect tool to use for this.

So, if you are considering adding a water feature to your pond, there are many excellent reasons to do so.