32 of 34 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best in Class, Inspiring, But Start Small, October 27, 2007
I bought this at Home Depot, which also offers a "materials" service from the same help desk in each store that will help design a deck and print out all the needed materials.
This offering appears to be "best in class." I found the following extremely helpful:
1) Up front discussion of the hardest part, creating a balanced ecosystem with balanced chemistry. If you do nothing else, let county water sit in a tub overnight to dissipate the cholorine, before putting it into a live environment.
2) Complete coverage (chapter 3) on materials and equipment. This is a lot easier than most might think, but it *does* require hard work if you get much above a pre-fabricated form. Rocks are *heavy* and you need a LOT of them--three times as many as you might think.
3) Superb photographs and drawings, checklists, and at the end, a list of water resources.
I am struck by how many people seem to be turning not only to waterfalls, but to full-up water gardens. While perhaps difficult to support in drought conditions, my wife and I have had a small pond for years and now want to move up to a waterfall and 4 times larger pond, and this is the book that has made that possible.
If you are discouraged or do not feel up to the challenge, I do recommend a very simple water feature, just a wash-tup and one of those spouting lion heads, or the bamboo trio. For under $100, you can get a water feature that is ready to go and plugs in, and for under $75 you can get a world class wind-chime. Add an outdoor clay fire pot with chimney, and you have the three key ingredients: water, wind, and fire.
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30 of 32 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Most complete and detailed book for creating Ponds and Streams, June 11, 2006
Good book. Pictures are good and the descriptions and details from the creation of Ponds, Streams and Waterfalls is the most complete of all the books that I have purchased or read. It could do a little better job of describing how to integrate a Bog Garden with a Pond. I still have questions about that.
Overall the best of the breed.
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13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Ideas for designing first pond, July 25, 2008
This review is from: All About Building Waterfalls, Ponds, and Streams (Ortho's All About Gardening) (Paperback)
I enjoyed this book; it fit my skill level which I would describe as intermediate. I have not had a pond, but I have kept a 110 gallon indoor aquarium for about twenty years. The information is laid out in an organized fashion with both color photos and b/w sketches. Describes pond design, layout, construction (with a few safety tips), plants, fish (but not detailed information for fish keeping), filters, maintenance and has many color photos.
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