Stock-tank pond inspiration
If you’ve been following my saga of the unfinished stock-tank pond with furrowed brow, wondering why I don’t get off my butt and finish it, take heart. My helpful husband went to the stoneyard with me this morning to help me haul home a trunkload of limestone for building a low retaining wall that will help level the space the stock tank is to occupy.
Or perhaps your furrowed brow is the result of simply not understanding what the heck I’m trying to accomplish with my gigantic stock tank, not to mention my stock-tank obsession.
If so, here is one source of inspiration for my stock-tank pond: the Buell Steelman-Rebecca Sams garden in Eugene, Oregon. This image and the following three pictures of their stock-tank pond are from my notebook of pages torn from magazines over the years, in this case Fine Gardening and (I think) Garden Design.
Steelman and Sams—who hail from Austin, by the way—employ straight-line paths that lead to focal points like this pond, where the paths change direction or intersect with other paths. The galvanized steel of the stock-tank pond makes a contemporary, clean-lined focal point in their lush garden, and it has the added advantage of being viewable from above, as mine will be. See the elevated deck in the upper left corner?
One of the characteristics I love about stock tanks, or cattle or water troughs, is how they reflect light and shine, attracting the gaze and bringing light into a dark portion of the garden. They especially look great with a combination of dark-foliage and silver-leaved plants.
The sight line in the Steelman-Sams garden travels from the stock-tank pond to the large urn at the next intersection of paths. Setting up focal points to pull you along from one area to the next is an extremely effective way of managing space in the garden.
My other source of inspiration for a big stock-tank pond is, as long-time readers know, my old, smaller stock-tank pond in my former garden. I got the idea for that one from the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, which has a similar pond in their display gardens. The Wildflower Center is a wonderful source of design ideas, not to mention native-plant combinations, and I highly recommend visiting at different times of the year, with notebook, pen, and camera in hand, if you’re interested in gardening in central Texas. The only thing they could improve on would be more display gardens that showcase contemporary design ideas, which are increasingly popular in Austin.
Stay tuned for my inchworm-like progress on my new stock-tank pond. I hope to be out in the garden at sunup tomorrow, when it’s only in the mid-80s and not 105 degrees, to start building the retaining wall.
All material © 2006-2009 by Pam Penick for Digging. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.
did you have a pump & filter in your old stock tank? I can’t see one in the Eugene tank either. So do they stay “clean” by having the correct balance of plants and fish? I’ve had issues! And now my old stock tank has rust inside so fish are out. I wonder if I painted the inside with Rustoliem (sp?)..hmmmmm…
I had a bubbler pump in my old pond, but it wasn’t what kept the tank clean. The key, in my experience, is having sufficient underwater plants, sufficient surface plants to shade the water, and a few fish to eat mosquito larvae and algae. Rust does seem like a problem. Let me know if painting it helps. —Pam
Great shots. I’ve used a horse trough that is long and thin. Great for a ending place in the garden. Can’t wait to see the finished water feature in place.
Me too, CIMS! —Pam
Beautiful and (I’m sure, deceptively) simple. I had my eye on a galvanized washtub only today. Perhaps I can do something in a mini way.
A stock-tank pond is very simple, Helen. In fact, a group of 5th graders at my kids’ school installed one for a class project a few years ago. The difficulty in my case is making the ground level for it. —Pam
🙂 Funny, I have one of those photos, the one with the sight line to the urn, also torn out and on my bulletin board. Inspirational indeed! Good luck with your work tomorrow. I’d love to see the progress on your wall so take lots of photos!
That garden is inspirational in so many ways, isn’t it? As for the wall, it will be very similar to the retaining wall in my agave bed. —Pam
I think it will be so neat! The examples you have are so perfect.
I love their pond and hope mine looks that good eventually. —Pam
OK – that is going to look SO nice! I love that tank in the circle with the paths leading off in other directions. Well dammit…now I want one. Mayhap I can fit a smallish one in my garden…*runs off to look for a tank-in-the-garden-spot*
Mayhap you can, Michelle. I hope you find a good spot for one! —Pam
I don’t wonder for a minute why you haven’t finished this enormous project. It’s Too Hot! I want a stock tank pond too, but we’ve decided the kitchen spruce-up will come before any more big garden projects. Until then, may I live vicariously through you?
We’ve been doing inside work to hide from the heat too, Caroline. Last week it was painting. But it’s time to get cracking on this pond. Hope I don’t get heat stroke. 🙂 —Pam
I’m inspired. Wish I could swing by to help. I’m sure it would be fun and educational, and I’d probably leave wanting a stock tank for my own garden!
You really do need one, Carol, being from Indiana and all. Or maybe a silo planter? —Pam
Good luck with the TANK. 🙂 It has to be much easier than digging an actual pond. It took me almost a year to dig mine (ugh!) I love it now, but the work was back breaking and I must mention that I live in the Phoenix area, so the temps were very cruel to me. I think the sun baked my brain, as I’m thinking of digging a stream now.
Water is so lovely in the garden!
Michelle
Whew, digging out a pond in Phoenix would be the end of me, I bet. Yes, stock tanks are good that way—no digging! Good luck with your stream though—sounds wonderful. —Pam
That looks high enough and slippery enough to keep raccoons out, what a great idea. I’m spending far too much time on putting plywood over my wine barrel water feature and removing it in the morning, but I just don’t have the heart to have the critters trapped.
I didn’t have a problem with raccoons in my old stock-tank pond. Maybe I’ll be lucky again. There isn’t an easy perch on a slippery stock tank, as you point out. —Pam
Leveling defeated me completely when I tried to make an in-ground pond. But your stock-tank pond will be beautiful so you must persist. Do you have concerns about the constant presence of water attracting raccoons, coyotes, etc?
I hope the leveling can be made to work. Time will tell. As for raccoons, I just addressed that in my answer to the comment above, and the pond will be in the fenced back yard, which coyotes and deer are kept out of. Of course, they could get in if they REALLY wanted to, but the previous owners said they never saw deer back there in the 13 years they lived in this house. —Pam
You go girl. I remember seeing the stock tank articles in those magazines. It will be magical when you finally get it finished. Well worth the wait no doubt.
I think it will be, Lisa. I miss having a water garden. —Pam
Pam, I am curious doesn’t the water heat up in metal containers and kill the plants? I would have expected it to be a problem and we don’t have the heat you have!
Do take your time and don’t work too hard in that heat, better to wait until it cools down. Best wishes Sylvia (England)
No, the water doesn’t get that hot, Sylvia. However, if placing a tank in full sun, it’s recommended that you bank soil against one side to help moderate the water temperature, especially if you have fish. My tank will be in part shade, so it shouldn’t pose a problem. —Pam
Hi Pam, thanks for showing us the vision as seen in the magazine tear outs. I have similar sheets, in notebooks with notations and sorted, by the way, I know, sad isn’t it? But that was all before blogging. Now most of the mags have been dropped, but there are no notebooks of blog photos to pour over! Your stock pond will be fabulous, can’t wait to see how you inch along to completion. Well worth the wait.
Frances
Great minds think alike, Frances. You sound very well organized, and my notebook is sorted and organized too. As for the pond, yes, inching away is about right. Snail-like progress continues incrementally in this heat. —Pam
Looks great! I would have never thought that type of pond could be so beautiful but it certainly is. Looks so awesome! -Jackie
I think so too, Jackie. —Pam
Pam, I have every confidence that your stock tank pond will be as lovely as that of the Sams-Steelman garden. I imagine you’re rocking out as I type!
If by rocking out you mean crawling along, you’re right, Cindy. The heat is a killer, so I’m taking it easy. —Pam
I can understand the stock tank obsession all too easily! I think it will look fabulous – but I sympathise with the hassle of getting it level. It’s one of those jobs that seems to take forever.
It does need to be done right for a pond. Otherwise the water will appear tilted, and I’ll have to redo it. —Pam
I hope you were out at 6am although I see it’s going to be the last of our cool days this week, only in the 90s! You have really inspired us to think about a stock tank and we think we have a prefect place for a small one. Question is how much work will it be to maintain it? I’m looking for something for the little side entry garden that will be easy to manage and of course deer proof. It will have to wait for the fall though.
I don’t know if any water feature would be deer-proof, particularly in a drought. It could become their favorite watering hole! —Pam
I’m with Jenny on this one — I’d love to have a small one, but can’t imagine a spot for it inside the fence at this time and the critters would be in it all the time if it were outside the fence. I suspect the deer would eat those nice, lush water plants, too! Good luck with the rock work and the leveling – sounds grueling but rewarding — your inspiration pages are cool.
Yes, I wouldn’t put one where the deer could get into it. Just think of how many more it would attract. —Pam
Stock tanks come in all sizes. I just got one the same size as Pam’s — but mine’s for the dogs to swim in. Just waiting for a filter to get here so I can put a fountain in…
I’m sure the dogs will enjoy it. Perhaps you will too! —Pam
I love the lush look of that inspiration garden. Can’t wait to see how yours turns out. Beautiful, I bet. Be careful in this heat.
Oh, I am, Linda. Most of my outdoor time is spent in the pool, wishing the garden fairies would come finish this project for me. 😉 —Pam
It was enjoyable to read from where you got your inspiration. I love your stock tank ponds and can’t wait to see the finished product. Good luck. Will you put some dark purple plants in or around it somewhere? You know how much I love those. Oh, dear, now I’ve made it my dream pond. Sheesh. 🙂 ~~Dee
I love those dark-leaved plants too, Dee. I’ll have to see what I can come up with. —Pam
Is this the couple that used to work at Big Red Sun, then migrated and started their own business? If so, I probably have these same pictures in my own files!
Not Big Red Sun, Becky. They used to work at Gardens, and their style still shows that influence. —Pam
Thank you for the link to your stock tank article, I’ve never made it back to that post. I bet you’ll believe me when I tell you I’ve got those same pictures of the garden in Eugene torn out. Fabulous! Good luck and thank you for the tip about getting it level, my husband is going to love this….(winkwink)
Loree, I am not at all surprised that this garden inspired you too. Have you ever visited it in person? —Pam
This is an interesting idea, I think it is unique. I hope you can get it done once the heat cools down.
Jake
Sooner than that, I hope, Jake. We won’t have cooler weather until October, and I don’t want to wait that long. —Pam
Hi Pam, and great pictures of the stock tank designs and plantings. I have had my 900 gallon tank for oh, about five years, so far so good…no rust, no critters. I have been through a couple of sunken “cyprio” pumps and filters, I initially started off with a UV filter, but I realised it is not really required. The biggest issue I have dealt with is evaporation in the summer. I installed a smaller, deeper stock tank off to one side that also has a small pump in the bottom of it. When the main tank needs a top up, I run a length of rubber pipe from the pump into the main tank. Really simple and it ensures the water quality is good when it enters the main tank, the fish appreciate it. Watch out for the gulf toads, they are a menace to the water quality if their numbers get out of control.
Let me know when you need some of my water lilies to populate your new pond, and check out the bog lily in my latest post, a must!
Can’t wait to see what you do with your tank.
Regards,
ESP.
I will watch out for the toads. I have horror images from your blog in my head, regarding those toads and their clogging spawn. Eww. Thanks so much for the offer of water lilies. We should be able to make trades of divisions in a year—I already have a ‘Colorado’ water lily waiting in a Tubtrug and plan to bring over the little ‘Helvola’ from my old pond. I’m going to look at your bog lily right now! —Pam
Those photos are beautiful. I wish I could have the tropical water plants here in Michigan, but I haven’t been able to keep them over the winter even indoors. One of my ponds is a stock pond, but it isn’t galvanized. It’s a heavy duty black rubber/synthetic stock tank and we set it right into the ground which helps with overwintering the lilies. It’s worked very well and eliminates the rust problems. But I do like the brightness of the metal in your garden photos.
The tropical water lilies ARE beautiful, but I don’t mess with them either, Sande. Only the hardy ones, and they overwinter just fine in the bottom of the stock tank. —Pam
Ah, I can definitely see how those photos inspired you. That garden is spectacular! And I’m glad I’m not the only one toiling outside moving dirt and leveling things in these temperatures, even though I swore up, down, and sideways that I would not put myself through that again this summer. Tomorrow I plan to haul another cubic yard of Hill Country garden soil for front yard leveling purposes. Luckily, the front yard’s in shade after 7:30 or so, which helps.
Good luck with the heavy garden work in this heat, Lori. Better to take it easy than to get heat stroke! —Pam
I had no clue how big that tank was until I the photo with you in it for scale. Thanks for sharing your source of inspiration and view behind the curtain of garden design decisions. It’s going to look wonderful.
It’s a biggie, all right. I was surprised by how large it looked on edge. But on the ground it seems well-proportioned. —Pam
It’s going to be fantastic, Pam! You continue to inspire us! I forwarded your blog to the landscaper who’s been helping me to see if she and i can figure out how to finally get a stock tank in the garden! gail
I hope you can, Gail. They’re fun and easy! —Pam
Oooooh, beautiful… inspires me too!
Beautiful and fairly easy to install, Chookie. What could be better? —Pam
I loved this post! Also the post with the instructions! Thank you for taking the time to post these! Keep up the GREAT work!!! Love it!
You’re welcome, Kelsey! I hope it proves useful for you. —Pam
I wonder if a black rubber stock tub would work. Would it heat up too much? Could fish, tadpoles and snails live in it?
I’ve never tried that, T. It might heat up too much if it were shallow and in the sun. Perhaps in the shade and with insulating dirt or rocks piled around it… Mosquito fish—gambusia—are very adaptable and might be your best choice. —Pam
I have an old, 20-foot long, poorly constructed flower planter in front of a large retaining wall that has always screamed “put a pond here!” But how? Your blog has inspired me. I like the look of the galvanized stock tank. You’re right it would brighten up a very dark corner. Now, how to convince hubby….?