Best Way to Decorate Your Garden with Water Features

There is a magical quality to water that makes it the perfect medium for pleasing garden features; the sparkle and sound of water cascading over pebbles or spurting from a fountain has a soothing, restful effect that will add a welcome extra dimension to any garden.

Many water features, such as garden ponds, are time-consuming and expensive to construct, but there are a few that can be quickly and easily installed and that will transform your garden in no time at all. The other great advantage of the decorative water features that follow is that because they do not rely on expansive or deep areas of water, they are much safer for families with young children or pets. They also require far less maintenance and general upkeep than larger, more ambitious water features.

Patio water gardens

Patio water gardens are quick and easy to build and can be constructed out of relatively inexpensive and widely available materials. They have been used for centuries to brighten awkward corners or to relieve the monotony of large, paved areas; water gardens were an integral part of medieval Spanish patios.

Generally miniature by definition, patio water gardens are ideal for fitting into corners, installing against walls or for use as ‘stand-alone’ features in the centre of a patio. As they need not be stocked with fish or plants, they are easy to maintain and to keep clean.

There are a variety of different patio water gardens to choose from:

Pebble ponds: The principle here is that water from a fountain splashes down over a pebble base, creating a rhythmic but irregular sound pattern while the sparkle of water splashing on an uneven surface creates attractive light patterns that will reflect across the garden on a summer’s day.

The fountain can be created by an upright column of water, or by water gushing out of a cherub’s or animal’s mouth secured to an ornamental wall. Decorative fountain ‘mouths’ are now widely available in most garden centres and DIY stores.

One simple and effective variation on the basic fountain is to position three square-shaped columns at different heights, from which water will tumble and cascade in varying degrees, creating more varied and pleasing visual and aural effects. The water will fall down onto the pebbles to be recycled by a small pump.

Another version of the pebble pond involves water spouting out of an ornamental water-pump and falling into a large, wide, basin of pebbles.

Fountain features

One of the most attractive and effective of water features is the stand-alone fountain. There are many different types, but typically such a fountain is formed of an ornate pedestal or a statue holding a pot or urn from which water flows. Stand-alone fountains are ideal for brightening up patios and other level, paved areas.