Planting in the rocks??

[small fish]

I am trying to figure out how to plant things in the cracks of the rocks close to the waters edge and around the waterfalls.  I am thinking if I just put dirt there the rain will just wash the dirt into the pond.  I had an idea of using some of that stuff that is used in the bottom of wire hanging baskets to hold the dirt in.  I bought some with the idea of cutting it in smaller parts and see if I can cup it in the rock to hold the dirt and plant.  What ideas do you have ??

Myra

[jatfla]

Try just using small pebbles...that you buy in a bag.  My plants have thrived planted in rocks and pebbles and they haven't seem to miss the dirt one bit.  The pebbles will settle around the plant roots just fine.

[livetogarden]

Here's a tip I got from a local pond society. Use plastic 'Baggies'. Put a couple really tiny holes in the bottom for drainage then a small amount of dirt in the bag, place plant in bag, then poke it in the spot you want it by the pond. Works great!!! I planted some sedum in some 2 years ago and they actually survived and returned last summer. Just make sure you check them for the need of mositure now and then since the bags are small and may dry out fast.
Cath

[Mikey]

Pond crud will eventually get trapped in between the rocks and that crud coupled with the pond water will provide enough nourishment for a variety of plants to survive.  I have had success planting the following bare-root plants in cracks and crevices at pond's edge:

I posted this on the bog forum earlier today. - http://www.americanponders.com/forum/index.php?topic=2155.0

I have large amounts of Sweet Flag planted in between rocks and stones at the edge of my pond.  The Sweet Flag has no soil attached and survives very nicely only from the nutrients it gathers from the pond.  The roots of the Sweet Flag have securely attached themselves to both my liner and the rocks. 

In the stream area of the pond I have planted Crinum bulbispermum (Orange River Lily) along the edges.  When not flowering it's not much to look at because it basically looks like grass but when flowering the flowers last for most of the fall and winter.

[Esther]

I have several plants just stuck between rocks with no soil. They have begun to creep behind the rocks and spread down the sides of the pond.

[Joyce]

You can also use aquarium filter material.
I recycle my aquarium filter cartridges, wrapping them around roots and sticking them in rock crevices. I leave the charcoal gravel in them, sticking the plant right into the charcoal gravel.
There is also a similar filter material you can buy at any pet store or pond store, comes in a black mesh. You could cut it into pieces to wrap around the roots and stick them into the crevices. The synthetic material wont rot, and the roots will grow right through it.

The problem with the coco coir fiber mats (which are used to line most hanging pots) is that they'll rot and fall apart, ending up on the bottom of your pond.

Oh, also, at WalMart of at Michaels, you can buy similar material made for seat cushions (its a fiber mat, not foam) that could easily be cut up and used to wrap around the roots. Comes in all thicknesses from 1/4" up to 4". It's white, but the foliage of the plant will cover it, besides the fact that it will turn a brownish green after a few days of accummulating pond gunk...and then the roots of the plant will eat that gunk up.

[tranquility]

Joyce- You never cease to amaze me  who would have thunk to do that....you go girl.....
Lawanna

[Bonnie]

I just tuck mine in the rocks and watch them grow!
(for some color, try Impatients.. feet damp!)

Just beware of invasive plants and plants with a strong root system such as Taro which can be very hard to pull out!

If you want to use something to start them in, you can use old pantyhose or knee highs.  Fill with soil and tie.  Cut a tiny hole just large enough to "plant".

[EagleEye]

Thinking along the same lines, I was going to use quilt batting. Will fill up with gunk quite quickly I would think.
And I think I have some extra knee highs.
Steve

[Bonnie]

Thinking along the same lines, I was going to use quilt batting. Will fill up with gunk quite quickly I would think.
And I think I have some extra knee highs.
Steve

Steve,
 use the quilt batting and save the knee highs,you might need them when you wear your high heels!

[tranquility]

And I think I have some extra knee highs.
Steve

Steve....I think you have some splainin' to do  .......I am a woman and I don't even have any extra knee highs 
Lawanna

[EagleEye]

Like I was telling the girls at the store, I use these as a filter for my pond vaccuum.
They said---yeah sure

Steve

[Bonnie]

Like I was telling the girls at the store, I use these as a filter for my pond vaccuum.
They said---yeah sure

Steve

Okay, we believe you..

[tranquility]

Like I was telling the girls at the store, I use these as a filter for my pond vaccuum.
They said---yeah sure

Steve

Okay, we believe you..

Sure we do  .......
Lawanna

[dorsalfin]

Hidohowwww All I just put the plants,impatients,collieus,elaphant ear,canna, easter lilies And some I can not think of right now bare root in to the water.
I have found out that most if not all shade plant will live in water.
And most will live in full sun I put them every ware and move as needed to make them happy.
With a small rock or two you can make sure the roots touch or just sit in the water they all do very well.
Although this will be a try an error Its kind of strange some times with plant and ponds
I have had plants and ponds not ten feet of each other and what works for one will not work for the other,go figger.
Just remember when you put plants in the rocks you will need to go back at the end of the season and remove them,if not they can become a futer problem roots decaying in all.
And you will be surprized how big some of the roots systems get.

And if you have koi,water pigs they will eat anything the can get in to their mouths.                                                                           They forage all the time for something to eat.
If you do not find away to keep the plant inplace or were they can not get to them.
Untiel they are establish the plant will not have a chance.
I very rarely find a plant they all do not like what one dose not like the other will.

Any way I will be haveing fun with this again this year and I hope you do to..

  Dorsalfin 

[happyoutsidegirl]

Like I was telling the girls at the store, I use these as a filter for my pond vaccuum.
They said---yeah sure

Steve

Okay, we believe you..

Sure we do  .......
Lawanna

NOT! 

[Joyce]

Thanks Lawanna!

I don't advise adding anything with soil or dirt in between the rocks.
No matter what you put the soil/dirt into, it'll seep out and stain/dirty your water.

Bare root plantings means just that: BARE ROOT...NO SOIL.

Thats why I use stuff that doesn't rot or break down.

[small fish]

WoW, so many great ideas  I knew y'all had the knowledge 

Myra

[Kristin F.]

Great! ..just the info I was looking for
THANKS!!

Joyce, Mike & you all; have you ever planted Marsh Marigold (Caltha Palustris) bare root in your ponds?
-I'm thinking of removing mine from the pots and plant them 12" deep, do you think they will be ok?

Thanks

[Joyce]

Marsh Marigold 12" deep?
I think way too deep.
Around here Marsh Marigold is very much a shallow water to wet soil marginal.
In fact it will grow just fine in a regular perennial garden...invasive as all heck too.
It grows up the embankments of drainage ditches and natural ponds, along dry stream beds,
all over the sandy grounds of one of my favorite Garden Centers: Peconic River Herb Farm.

It's a native here...and its everywhere!

And, by the way, it is poisonous.

[Kristin F.]

Thanks Joyce, it's native here too but is not as wildly spread here though.
-but what the heck, if I drown this one I have 3 more in pots

..I take it you're not to fond of them, huh LOL
I just love them because Marsh Marigold is the plant that blooms first here in Iceland, it's so refreshing to see it in full bloom when the other pond plants are still recovering after winter.
-but I better watch out since it's so incredibly invasive as you say

[Joyce]

Actually, I think they are awesome. Especially in full bloom.
And once they stop blooming, spring is over and it gets hot, they seem to go dormant and other plants grow over them...then they return again in full force in the spring.

It's just that many people want them weeded out, and get very angry when I advise them the only way to get rid of them is to scrape a foot of their gardens off with a skid steer, spray the scraped remaining soil with foliage killer, and replace the 1 foot of soil with fresh, solarize topsoil and replant everything.

It is that impossible to eradicate.

[dorsalfin]

Ha Kris: I know how joyce feels I put some I thought was marsh marigold  devil     plant  in my pond one time but never again.
And Im not to fond of water letuce eather I wish I could get parrot feather to grow in my pond though.

Mis Deb reminded me yesterday that I used whiffel balls.
And she was right I had a bullheaded koi last year that would not leave a plant in the rocks alone.
So I took a whiffel ball that I use for media in my bio filter.
Stuck the plant in bare root in one of the holes of the ball.              And put between the rocks he could mess with it but for some reason he could not get it out.

He eventually  gave up but the roots took the ball over so much I had to throw them away. I need to start keeping a journal again old brain 

And she also reminded me    got to love her  that I had used some weed stop fabric. The kind you can get in a roll at the hard ware store. And come to think of it work very well in the rocks with no dirt.
I do not see why it would not also work with soul or pee graveal maybe a little kitty litter.

   Dordsalfin   

[SheilaJ]

Kristen, it might not be ideal, but you could probably grow the marsh marigold in 12" of water if you want to. I sink mine to the bottom of the pond every year, and I usually don't pull it up in time (I hate sticking my hands in frigid cold water). Next thing I know, it's blooming. It stretches up and gets the flowers above water eventually anyway. Right now it probably has 14 to 16" of water over it and it's blooming away happily.

I've also found that if I move it to a shady pond after it blooms it will sometimes not go dormant over the summer and even bloom some again in August.

I love seeing the cheerful little yellow flowers so early in the year. It takes such a long time to get waterlily blooms!

[Esther]

I have a question about the MM. Does it form little beebee size tubers on the roots? Do new plants come from them?

[Joyce]

Yup, every part of the root, even if you stick them in a blender, with reproduce a new plant.

[Esther]

  Put them in the blender. LOLOL Here's a picture of something that invaded my rock garden a few years ago. I don't know where it came from but we finally dug out about a foot of soil and put in new to get rid of it. I hate the new soil. The local extension office called it Lesser Celandine or something like that.



I found one growing in my front yard this spring and you can be sure I'll carefully dig it out and burn it.

Joyce I found this on a site that talks about invasive plants:   NOTE: Lesser celandine closely resembles marsh marigold (Caltha palustris), a native wetland plant that occurs in the eastern United States. Marsh marigold is a robust plant with glossy, rounded or kidney-shaped leaves and flowers on stalks that are 8 in (20.3 cm) or more in height and consist of five to nine deep yellow "petals" (actually sepals). Marsh marigold does not produce tubers or bulblets, nor does it form a continuous carpet of growth. Extreme care should be taken to correctly identify lesser celandine before undertaking any control measures to avoid impacts to this plant.