wrote in message
ups.com...
Idea: I want to build a little (250-300 gallon) pond in the backyard of
my suburban north-Florida home.

Question 1: Will this little pond be a serious haven for mosquitoes and
every other nasty, winged insect (including fire ants that love black
plastic like my planned pond liner spread over the ground)?

Location: My backyard is fully fenced-in (5-foot high wood fence) and
is located in the middle of a residential area. The site I selected is
about 30-35 feet away from my patio area, and one end will be located
at the top of a hill the other end will be about 5"-6" lower. I
figured I can just berm up the lower end. Then drape the end of the
plastic pond liner over the top of the berm to hold the berm in place.
(The soil in my yard, like most of Florida, is very sandy.) There'll
be a small (8-foot high) Dogwood tree located on the south side and a
section of my backyard's fence will be located west side of the pond
and will shade the later evening sun. In all, the pond will probably
get about 6 hours of direct sun and a couple hours of semi-shaded.

Questions 2 & 3: Is this location okay? Or will it get too much sun...
and end up being green, algae-filled swamp in a matter of weeks?


It depends on the nutrient level in the water, if you add any fertiliser for
water plants (or it runs in of your lawn for instance) or you add fish food,
or allow fallen leaves etc to rot in the pond then the nutrients will
encourage algae. I put some tubs of water lillies in a small pool, these
were prepared with rotted manure and blood and bone as lillies are gross
feeders, the water turned bright green in a week.

The solution is not algicide but a large graded box filter as part of your
pump line, it will remove both rotting organic matter and the algae given
time to develop. Talk to your local ornamental pool place - a good one will
not only sell you the right stuff but advise you sensibly.

David