Planting pond plants

[nitiram]

Can I really plant my pond plants into ordinairy soil in the baskets? have just ordered some plants from Paul Broomfield  Aquatics and this is what they suggest in their info. Has anyone done this?  Have ordered a 'small pond pack' with baskets as have never planted any before...Help.

[nitiram]

[carolinej]

Now this is going to sound really awful, but I'll tell you what I did when I planted up my pond.Please do not take it as advice , as I'm sure it was very wrong :-[

I read that you needed special compost with no nutrients in it, or it would turn the pond green with algae. I am a miser at heart , and decided that as long as the roots were anchored, then anything with no nutrients would do. So I just put them in the plant baskets, with their roots anchored with small stones I had dug from the veg patch. They grew OK for me, but DONT risk your plants like that unless you are as mad as me!!!

Told you it was awful. I would even describe it as sacreligious if I could spell it ::)

cj :)

[nitiram]

Now that sounds like a good idea...did you have soil at the bottom of your pond for them to grow into? i have no idea how pond plants grow at all  ??? ;D

[carolinej]

No, it was a plastic liner. I suppose having soil in the pond would change things a lot.

Remember though, that was NOT advice. I wouldnt want all your plants to die :o

cj :)

[Doris_Pinks]

Mine have all gone into aquatic compost. I do often wonder about regular soil, but we are on VERY heavy clay!
This may help you  :)

http://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profiles0502/water_plants.asp

DP

[nitiram]

Thanks Doris-Pinks,
This is clear advice, a great help.

By the way I adore the old fashioned, clove smelling pinks...lol ;D

[Doris_Pinks]

No Probs Nitiram, glad it was of help!
Maybe thats why I have no friends.......I smell of cloves!!! ;D ;D ;D  (I love em too!)

DP

[gardenqueen]

Sometimes I use plain old garden soil to plant in and just put some pea gravel on the top of the plastic mesh baskets to stop the fish nosing about. Other times I have just put plants straight into mesh baskets, no soil other than what is on the plant to begin with, and topped with gravel, and they have done very well.l

[nitiram]

Do the roots grow into the gravel?   

[gardenqueen]

Yes they do and seem fine. Easy enough then to pull the plants out should you want to divide them in time.

[nitiram]

Now all I need now are some stones or gravel. Will aquarium grit do ? Don't have too many small stones on the lottie but will hunt around to see how many i can find..

[gardenqueen]

Not sure about aquarium grit, but pea gravel is less than £2 per bag at B&Q. Failing that any size stones will do, but wash them well first. as well as the pea gravel if you buy that!

[Hyacinth]

Thanks nitiram for asking the question, DottyP for the link, and the rest of you for the extra advice 8) This isn't a section I visit very often, but from today I've a homeless water lily to look after ;D

[nitiram]

Well I planted them all up in baskets, with a little graden soil and then pea grit..They have been in a week and when i checked yesterday most of them have been eaten by somehting....lol, lol. Any ideas what can be eating them? They are in a pond so not slugs surely? Would the snails, tadpoles, pond skaters eat them do you think???