Water Garden Ideas – Making a rock waterfall for water garden ideas not only increases its style quotient, but also gives a natural look to the yard. Constructing a rock waterfall for water garden ideas might look like a daunting task, but if proper procedure is followed it can be done without any professional help. Learn basics of DIY rock waterfall for water garden ideas creation.
Water Garden Ideas Introduction
An outdoor rock waterfall not only looks elegant but also provides a soothing ambiance which makes you feel closer to nature. Building a rock waterfall for water garden ideas isn’t an easy job as it requires adroit knowledge and precise instructions. However, the good news is that with a little bit of hard-work you can easily manage a beautifully cascading rock waterfall in your backyard for water garden ideas.
DIY Rock Waterfall for water garden ideas
When beginning to construct the do-it-yourself rock waterfall for water garden ideas, there are two things that should be considered – the structure of the waterfall and the pool in which the cascading water is going to fall. Once this foundation is complete you can focus on installing the pump which will re-circulate the water. An outdoor waterfall can be constructed on any surface, but a slightly elevated slope is preferred for its construction, as it provides a natural flow. If you have an elevated surface then use it, otherwise an elevation needs to be created artificially.
The materials that you’ll need to build a rock waterfall for water garden ideas are: submersible pump, rocks, tubes, pond liner, shovel, sand, and water hose. You’ll need 25-30 rocks in a variety of sizes along with a few large ones that should ideally be on the flatter side. A submersible pump is an airtight pump which works by pushing the water towards the elevated surface, while it is completely submerged under water. A submersible pump is the basis on which the water cascade works.
The first step in creating a waterfall for water garden ideas includes clearing up the area of any obstacle such as big stones, weeds etc. so that the functioning becomes smooth. Once that is taken care of, begin by creating proper flooring for the pond liner, which can be done by digging a hole in the ground to fit in the pond liner. Line the hole with an inch of sand in order to give a height to the liner, so that it stands above the ground level and prevents dirt from entering the waterfall.
When designing the cascade, the rocks should be observed very carefully and should meet the criteria that you require. A cascading waterfall for water garden ideas design comprises of rocks over which the water flows and therefore the rocks are called the spillway rocks. Spillway rocks should be flat with sharp square edges so that water runs smoothly over these edges. Beneath these rocks lies the tube which you can encase in an inverted plastic flower pot (cheap and effective). The tube should be rested under a small trench created for it. Rocks should be placed to create four small rock-walls around the pond liner. To build a sturdy liner you can place a long flat rock as the base, to provide stability to the whole structure.
Placing the rocks should be in asymmetric manner instead of keeping them precisely over one another. Once the spillway rocks are placed, you can work on your tubing and pumping. Once this is done, fill the base with water and start the pump to see its functioning. It will take a few tries to get the desired water cascade, but with little adjustments you will have what you need. The height of your spillway rocks creates the splash of the waterfall and the width of the rocks gives them calming flush; you can adjust either or both of them to give you the desired effect.
Image Credits & References for water garden ideas
- How To Build a Waterfall for water garden ideas; http://clearwaterlandscapes.com/how-to-articles/how-to-build-a-waterfall/
- waterfall2 – water garden ideas By Yolanda; https://www.flickr.com/photos/annrkiszt/3742080096/
- Backyard Makeover – AFTER – By F Delventhal; https://www.flickr.com/photos/krossbow/152144670/
- Artificial Rock Waterfalls Ponds and Water Features – water garden ideas; http://www.artificialrock.com.au/artificial_waterfalls.htm