Artificial Ponds

If you've done some research into the creation of artificial ponds for a backyard or garden, you may have wondered about a few things. Why is a plastic liner needed? Why a water filter? Why are water treatment chemicals necessary? Natural ponds seem to do just fine without these elements. Why do artificial ponds need them?

Artificial Ponds Versus Natural Ponds

There are several important differences to consider when comparing a natural pond to an artificial one. Most natural ponds are much bigger than one you might build in your backyard. Surface area is one of the most important aspects of promoting pond health for the plants and animals that will be living in it. A pond with a greater surface area will be able to absorb more sunlight and allow for a greater exchange of oxygen and other essential gases. A bigger pond will also allow for a greater variety of plant and animal life to help promote a more symbiotic ecological balance.

Puddles and Ponds

The next difference is time. You can't wait for decades or centuries for plants and animals to naturally grow and evolve in a pond you build in your backyard. For every successful, beautiful, fully functional pond you see in nature, there were about a million other puddles of water that never made it to that stage.

When creating your own little pond in the backyard, you have to help nature along a little bit. Plastic liners keep water from seeping into the soil below. A filter helps keep the pond clean, compensating for its smaller size and lack of vegetation. Chemical treatment adds the necessary nutrients and purification to the water that Mother Mature would have provided over the course of years through the life that prospers in a natural pond.