Since 1950, we’ve lost a vast number of ponds from the British landscape. Not only has development been increasing since this time to house our ever growing population, farmland ponds have also disappeared. The farm landscape used to be dotted with ponds that acted as barriers to prevent harmful chemicals from entering the environment but also to support wildlife. Before the advent of mechanised intensive farming, farms were quite wild places. However as we’ve transformed the landscape to maximise food production for that same growing population, wildlife was pushed out. Not only has this seen a dramatic decline in species such as great crested newts, but also farmland birds such as corncrakes.

It’s probably no surprise that at the moment, gardens are a haven for amphibians looking for somewhere to breed. Garden ponds are the ideal oasis for frogs and newts, as long as they aren’t stocked with fish. I think it’s fair to say that gardeners don’t use the same level of pesticides as agricultural farmers, of which some can be harmful to amphibians. This provides the perfect place for frogs to lay their eggs and forage for food, as long as lawns aren’t too manicured. Amphibians are very sensitive to a range of environmental contaminants, as they uptake water through their skin. If that water is contaminated then it can have fatal effects. It is no surprise, then, that amphibian populations around Great Britain and Ireland are now pretty much absent from agricultural landscapes, following the loss of ponds and the use of pesticides.

If you’re a friend to the frogs, an acquaintance to toads, and a buddy to newts, then don’t worry. You can build a garden pond to help the amphibian in your area. My colleague Vanessa has compiled how you can do just that below. If you make a garden pond after reading this, we’d like to see the photos so please tag me on social media using the handle @stevoallain (on Twitter and Instagram). Don’t forget that amphibians are only one part of the pond ecosystem – there are many insects such as diving beetles and dragonflies that also call a pond their home. There is nothing better than sitting by a pond in the spring and watching the life within doing its thing.

Take it away, Vanessa!

Creating a pond is one of the easiest things you can do to draw wildlife to your garden. If you don’t mind a little bit of sweat and mud, you can craft a little sanctuary for animals and plants.

There are only a few essential steps for making a pond. The first is to get hold of some pond liner, which you can get in various places on internet, or a good old-fashioned garden centre. Liner is needed to keep the water in your pond and stop it escaping into the earth below! Liner is usually made of plastics, like PVC, or LDPE, though some shops do sell more eco-friendly materials, too.  You’ll need to decide whether to use a roll or sheet of liner, or opt for a pre-formed/pre-moulded liner. Buying a sheet or roll of liner means you can fit the liner to the particular shape of the hole you dig. It gets a bit more complex to make a pond using a pre-moulded liner.  At this stage, I’ll talk through the simplest method, which uses the roll/sheet of plastic liner. Some people recommend also using underlay, that is placed in the hole before the liner. This acts as a protective layer, stopping anything from poking holes in your liner.

Where should you dig your pond? Ideally, pick an area of your garden which doesn’t get full sun, or full shade. Areas which get a bit of both are ideal. You may want to avoid digging a pond right under a tree, so that in autumn the fallen leaves don’t clog it up.

The size and shape of the hole you dig are entirely down to personal preference, and the amount of space you have to play with. Even a small pond around 50 cm across will encourage more biodiversity in your garden. How deep should you make your pond? This will depend on the size of the hole – but it doesn’t need to be very deep. The important thing is to make sure that at least one of the sides has a shallow slope, so that animals which enter your pond can climb out again.

Now for the strenuous part – digging the hole! If possible, make sure you have a sturdy spade, and somewhere to put the spare earth you dig up. In my experience, you’ll end up with a much bigger pile of earth than you expect. After you’ve dug the size and shape you want, remove any stones or sharp roots that might pierce the liner.  Now you can add your underlay, if you have some. Ensure it snugly fits the hole. Now place the liner into the hole, whether underlay is there or not. If you didn’t use underlay, it shouldn’t be a problem! With the first pond I made, we didn’t bother with underlay, and the endeavour worked out fine (and even some frogs took up residence!)

Shape the liner to fill the hole nicely – you might need to fold the sheet or crease it in places. That’s not a problem. If there’s not a perfect fit, that’s ok. Remember, water is heavy – and the weight of the water that will eventually fill the pond, will press the liner into place.

Hold the liner (and underlay if used) in place around the rim of the pond using large pebbles or bricks. Now you can trim most of the excess liner and underlay. Leave a little bit of excess for the moment.

Now comes the moment where you can add water to your new pond. It doesn’t matter whether you fill it using a hose or tap water, or let it fill naturally with rainwater. It’s a myth that tap water shouldn’t be used for ponds. The chlorine used to sanitise tap water usually evaporates within a day, then the water is totally safe for animals.

From this point, you can get creative with how you will plant your pond, and how you will design the edges of the pond. At the moment, you may still have bare edges of liner – but fear not! If you find the bare liner edges unsightly, these can be easily covered up decorative stones or gravel, to create a pleasing border around the pond. Adding some foliage close to the edges of your pond will also provide shelter for small animals. And give animals different ways to enter and exit the pond, such as a submerged log or vegetation around the pond’s edge.

For detailed info on how to introduce plants into your pond, I’d recommend reading The Wildlife Pond Book by Jules Howard. Indeed, check out the book before digging your pond, as it has a wealth of advice and tips, for helping you to maximise your garden pond potential.

If you do make a garden pond, it is best to leave it and wait for frogs or newts to colonise it naturally. This may take some time depending on the area you live in and the time of year you dig the pond. We recommend digging one in the winter to give it time to mature before the following spring. Frogs may also take a while to arrive, depending on how many ponds are in your local area; but as long as you build it they will come. Don’t be tempted to move animals from another pond to your own, as you may inadvertently spread diseases such as the amphibian chytrid fungus and ranavirus. When amphibians do arrive, then please record them on Record Pool, and if you find any dead or dying animals, please report them to Garden Wildlife Health.

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