6 blooms! and a Dragonfly

[Jonna]

I know that isn't a lot of blooms for some but in my little shaded pond it was wonderful!  Thanks to Marilyn and others I'm figuring out which are tropicals and which hardys. I got in the other day and moved the lilies around, putting the hardies farther towards the waterfall - more shade, less sun - and the tropicals at the sunny end.  I like the look better too, they were all bunched up before and I couldn't see the fish at the end I like to sit at.

Here's another bloom from my tropical Afterglow



and the 5 blooms on my unknown white hardy


and a couple of shots of a big red Dragonfly that likes to sit on a new papyrus stalk.

[miguynmkoi]

Love your white hardies...dragonflies are fun to watch around the pond 

[Desertponder]

Great pics! I love dragonflys.  It seems like I've had more of them around this year than usual. I mostly see small blue ones.

[Jonna]

There are some small blue dragonflies that come around here as well.  For awhile, I thought maybe they were the females but I saw 2 red ones doin' the deed the other day so I guess the blue ones are a different type. 

Here's some more pics.  Afterglow again and another bud coming up.



the fish hanging at the bottom of the pond, probably because it's hot and if I don't feed them when I first come up to the pond they lose interest.



This lily is, I think, a night blooming tropical.  It hasn't bloomed this year though and it has very different leaves, you can see they are arrow shaped and small.



Here's a pic of the whole pond today.



and the skippy/waterfall

[Julles]

The lilies are beautiful.  I esp liked the distance shot, with the pads and flowers in perspective.    ... but... I can look at dragon flies all day!   

I especially like the deck around your pond.  On the pond tour this year, so many ponds were pretty, but you couldn't walk right up to the edge and look down in.  With a deck around it, you can do that.  So much easier to see the fish.

[bunny56lbc]

I've never seen a red dragonfly before...that is cool looking !
Afterglow is a pretty lily , I like it .
bonnie

[thedahlialama]

i wouldn't try measuring yourself by others. 5 blooms of the same lily in one day is an impressive sight!! it was neat to see even in pictures!

1st time i've seen your pond and i must say it looks like something that should be in better homes and gardens. so simple and so elegant. beautifully landscaped. quite unique i think. you should feel as proud as anyone about what you've got there. 


hmm bonnie, i didn't realize that red dragonflies were so unique. that's what most of ours are. i get really excited when i see a blue one and a red one together!!

[maryvonne]

Your pond looks very nice. I really like Afterglow. Mine didn't survive and I haven't found another one since. Your white lily is pretty too.

Maryvonne

[Jonna]

Thanks all.  We're working on landscaping some more of the yard, at least covering the fence you see in the back of the picture.  It gets very, very hot here. It was 117° for a couple of days this week but it's been a balmy 106° today and yesterday.  So, the difficulty is finding things that can stand the heat.  Usually it doesn't get very cold in the winter, last winter was an exception and a lot of plants died or almost died from a week or so of lows in the 20's and 30´s.   Because of the heat, the pond is shaded most of the day and it is almost 4' deep.  I used to have the lilies on stands but I just put them on the bottom this year, I think they would do better in shallower water and of course with more sun.  It's all a compromise as I don't think the fish could survive in full sun nor could the plants in the skippy and on the falls.  The water temp is about 83° now and that's due to the shade and the depth.

I meant to say that that arrow leafed lily is the one that Marilyn I think had me rescue from the compost pile.  It's sending up leaves like crazy but so far no buds.

I'm going to keep some of the white hardy and yet another piece of Mexicana that I found still growing because my friend here tells me that they bloom in the winter while I'm in Mexico.  That's kind of cool so they get to stay.  I still like the tropicals though and I know they bloom all year in warm climates because it was February when we were in Guatemala and the rivers were full of white tropicals blooming.  I'm hoping I can find room for some lily ponds in the yard of our new house in the Yucatan, it certainly should be warm enough for them to bloom all year.

[joeyb5980]

I love your pond and your blooms are great!  5 blooms on one hardy is a very good thing!     The potted plants hanging on the wall beside the pond are very pretty too...

[CliffandJoann]

Beautiful, 5 blooms for us would be spectacular! I love the pond decking, so unique. 

Joann

[thedahlialama]

i just figured out what i really like about the way the wood deck is done. instead of straight laid slats, the wood is all running towards the pond and gradually angling around to form a circle. it's kinda like looking at a pond sitting in the middle of a giant hollowed out tree. i kept looking at the pics and trying to figure out what made it so distinctive from other wood bordered ponds i've seen and that's it i think! everytime i check in on this thread i am impressed by it that much more!! 

[happyoutsidegirl]

Hi Jonna, your pond is looking great! I'll bet you can't wait to get one at your new place. Is the renavation started yet? I just loved reading and seeing about it.

[SueSTx]

Beautiful

[miguynmkoi]

As always Jonna, your pond is BEEAAUUUTTIIFFUULLL 

[GAjen]

Your pond is one of my favorites. Love the deck and the decor.

[Desertponder]

I love the way you have done your pond. The deck running around the perimeter is very nice. 

[Jonna]

Thanks guys, most of the credit for the nice woodwork goes to my friend and builder Diane.  We've worked on a lot of projects together and if I can describe what I want, she can build it. 

Here are some pics from the construction.  She put the deck on before we put the liner in so that she could cut and shape it without worrying about the liner.


We used chalk and drew on the sides the approximate shape we wanted and then she got in the hole and cut it.



Once the wood had a coat of sealer on it, we numbered all the boards and took it apart until after the liner was in. The boards are supported by the outside rings of wood, they don't rest on the pond edge at all.

[Ky Kim]

I've always liked how you did your pond, with the wood all the way around.  Your blooms look great, love the first pic.  But the multi white blooms are very pretty, and I always enjoy looking at dragonflies....my favorite insect.

Kim