Low-Maintenance Water Gardens [Hardcover]

Helen Nash (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1996

Imagine having your own water garden, complete with beautifully landscaped pond and year-round plantings, stocked with colorful fish, friendly frogs, turtles, and snails. These simple plans show how to create a water garden specially constructed for low maintenance. Learn about correct siting; preventing problems related to tree roots, runoff, and water tables; choosing materials that resist punctures and leaks; and making sure the garden is level, to prevent spilling and flooding, and accessible for easy repair. See how to control both plants and animals to keep them stress-free and disease-free, and how not to overload the ammonia and nitrite levels. Bonus: a list of inexpensive tools and a chart of simple babysitting techniques so you don't have to worry when away from home.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Nash, coauthor of Water Gardening in Containers, also reviewed in this section, tells gardeners how to plan and construct a low-maintenance water garden. She provides extensive information on filtration, plant and fish care, and seasonal maintenance. Nash explains how to select the correct site, how to prevent problems concerning tree roots, runoffs, and water tables, how to prevent spilling and flooding, and how to protect water gardens from predators. There is also a list of appropriate tools and equipment. All 128 pages contain color photographs. George Cohen

Product Details

• Hardcover: 127 pages
• Publisher: Sterling Pub Co Inc (August 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0806948868
• ISBN-13: 978-0806948867
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 8.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,286,377 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best book I've read with how-to's for busy water gardeners., March 24, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Low-Maintenance Water Gardens (Hardcover)

Great book for beginners! Helen Nash not only tells what to do for low maintenance water gardening, she tells what not to do. Complete with advice on low-maintenance plant and fish selection. A simple, quick-read book. Fully illustrated.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Painless Water Gardens to Enhance Your Peacefulness . . . ., July 17, 2001

By 

Donald Mitchell "Jesus Loves You!" (Thanks for Providing My Reviews over 110,000 Helpful Votes Globally) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 100 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Low-Maintenance Water Gardens (Paperback)

Do you love water lilies? . . . Koi? . . . the sound of falling water? . . . the jeweled rainbows of a fountain's spray?

Do you have a bad back? Are you busy?

If you answered "yes" to at least one question in each of the first two paragraphs, this is the book for you!

Water gardening is something that I have always wanted to do, but was daunted by the sheer volume of work . . . and the risk of what could go wrong if I made a mistake. With Ms. Nash's help, both problems can be pleasantly removed.

The book starts by helping with planning and construction. What effects do you want? Sound? Fish? Shape? Match to your home? Lilies? Fountain?

Put it in full sun well away from trees and shrubs. Pick a spot that is elevated so that there will be no run-off into the water. Also, be sure you are well above the water line.

The book goes on to help you select materials, considering the initial costs versus the maintenance involved. You also get a sense of what maintenance is needed during each season, and how you can use preventive maintenance to avoid work later on.

The book contains many practical principles and ideas that I never would have considered. For example, you can put a screen over the water during the season when debris is most likely to get into the water. There is also an inexpensive skimmer you can make that works automatically.

How you filter the water is an art in and of itself. I loved the concept of how you can use a combination of natural filtration and an easy-to-access pump to create clean water.

As an example of another great idea, Ms. Nash suggests having one white fish if you plan to have fish. Changes in that fish's color then will help you monitor the quality of the aquatic environment before unnecessary stress develops.

If you aren't sure what kind of water lilies you want, the gorgeous color photographs should be a great help.

The appendix even has all kinds of useful ratios of the sort the new water gardener is likely to need to know, but will probably not remember.

Unless you are planning to create something on the order of Monet's garden at Giverney, you will find this book tells you more than you could possibly need to know. Keep it as a handy reference, and you'll soon be enjoying a marvelous water garden designed to suit your own preferences!

After you finish enjoying this book, I suggest that you also think about what other changes you could make in your garden that would make it more peaceful for you . . . with minimal effort and maintenance. Do you have a bird bath? Do you have a set of wind chimes?

Establish a natural balance by thinking through the processes that need to be established and maintained . . . in all parts of your life!

0 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Poor writing style, July 8, 2005

By 

M. Illich (texas) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Low-Maintenance Water Gardens (Hardcover)

The book was okay. I was very disappointed in the writing. Although the author had pretty good tips on water gardens, the redundancy of the word "low-maintenance" made it almost unbearable to read.

I had purchased the book because I was interested in low-maintenance water gardens but I did not need to be reminded of it on every page.