Sue,

Two comments:

1) Just steep walls is not enough ... these critters can climb like the
best, even on near vertical surfaces...

I used a wooden frame around my turtle pond:

http://www.wide-o.net/various/turtlepond.jpg

The basking area is wood as well, and there is water underneath. I made a
"basket" in wood, put liner in that, then dirt, and put it on large rocks to
maximize the available water.

2) Sorry to say that not filtering is not an option :-( They poo and they
poo a lot LOL. Your water would have a white covering within days.
Turtles are just as picky about their water conditions as fish (if not more)
so you really need to aerate/filter. You really don't want a salmonella
breading place, so filtering is a must.

3) Make it deep enough in one spot so they can overwinter in the turtle
pond. (about 3 ft)

4) The pond should ideally be in the sunniest place in your garden, they
need the UV and warmth to grow/survive

5) Water plants... um... unless it grows faster than they can eat, don't
bother.

6) These things GROW at an alarming rate :-) so make it big enough

They are wonderful creatures (never knew they could sneeze until a few days
ago !) but they really need a good place to stay.

HTH,

Theo

"Sue Alexandre" schreef in bericht
...
I want turtles. I've ALWAYS wanted turtles. I've tried to have turtles,
and no matter HOW turtle-proof I make my pond, they escape.