A "water garden" can mean several different things; bog, reflection pond, birdbath, fish pond, water plants, to name just a few. Where you locate it depends largely on its role, as well as your lifestyle. The key rule, though, is to place it where you will enjoy it. That?s next to your deck if you?ll be spending a lot of time there, or maybe place it just outside a featured window. Keep in mind, however, that most water plants need lots of sun - in Texas though, they should get protection from direct sunlight in the mid-afternoon. One place not to put a pond is the lowest place in the yard; a gathering place for lots of dirty runoff water and eroded soil.

A water garden is much more than a hole in the ground that?s filled with water. It should be a natural shape that conforms to the ground around it. A shape that?s too geometric (like a square or perfect circle) will always look man-made and unnatural. On the other hand, a shape that?s too intricate is not only more difficult to construct, but also creates dead areas from which water can?t move though the filtering mechanisms. An oval may seem too simple at first, but your plantings (particularly along the edge) will give it a free-form appearance.

You have two general choices revolving around the pond?s shape, and both involve digging a hole ? there?s no way around it. Either you can buy a pre-formed plastic "tub", or you can dig a hole in the shape of your choosing and line it with rubber liner. You can use either method, but the pond, when settled in the ground, needs to be level no matter how you build it.

Many people use the rubber liner method, and build their ponds incorporating a stone rim, a plant shelf, and a header pond. (This allows for more originality) The stone rim is a vertical wall around the rim of the pond, which serves as a locator for the rocks that hold the rubber liner in place and hide the pond?s edge. This rim should be slightly shallower than the rocks you?re using. ! suggest that it be about 8 inches deep ? 4 inches above the eventual water level, and 4 inches below.

The plant shelf is a horizontal ledge, also dug out of solid dirt. It encircles the pond (or only part of it, depending in the design) forming an "L" with the stone rim. The plant shelf is below the water line, and is typically 18 to 24 inches wide and is surfaced with small stones ? it?s wide enough to hold pots of water plants.

The header pond is a small pool where water accumulates after being recirculated by the pump and before spilling over a waterfall or a cascade of rocks. The header pond is no larger than one-third the surface area of the main pond. Technically, it can be omitted ? but it gives the water a more natural and even flow.

A water garden with a flowing cascade or waterfall requires normal household electricity, a skimmer box, a recirculating pump and a hose that directs water back to the header pond or to the top of the cascade. The sizes that you?ll need depend on the size of the pond, and the proposed "activity" of the water. Be sure to place the skimmer box (which collects water before it?s recirculated by the pump) at the opposite end of the pond from the cascade, to make sure all the pondwater passes through the skimmer.

The skimmer box and pump may be key to the pond?s filtration. But, in addition to the mechanical filtration, you?ll probably need biological filtration in the form of beneficial bacteria. These "good" bacteria feed on the harmful ammonia, nitrates and nitrites in the water, so it can safely be used by your plants. You should provide a place (like a mesh bag filled with lava rock) for these bacteria to colonize. Put this bag in the header pond, near where the pump and hose bring in water. (The bacteria will perform best in the cleanest, most oxygen-rich water possible.) Success has also been reported in killing algae with a non-poisonous application of corn meal ? sold as "Pond Cleaner".

A water garden can provide you with a lifetime of enjoyment. It can inject a new "character" into your landscape, and give you a whole new palette of potential plants. Lots of people enjoy the gurgling sound, too. Especially in Texas, it?s a very efficient way to revive and enliven just about any yard.