Question about ponds in deep south

[LAbb]

I live in Louisiana and would like to have a lily pond with a waterfall. My question is can I have a pond without rocks? Louisiana doesn't have any rocks that look like the traditional river bed rocks used for most landscape ponds but instead we usually have a red clay hard pan in this area. I would like to have a scene that would look as natural as possible with a waterfall that flows over something that would look normal in Louisiana. Is this possible or is it too difficult to maintain the integrity of the system without the rocks?

Thanks

[tadpole]

How are you planning on anchoring and hiding the liner overlap around the perimeter of the Pond? This is almost always done with rock. Use similar rock for your Waterfall. As far as I know, there are not any natural waterfalls in Louisiana, so any constructed waterfall would not look normal. There are other ways to anchor liner, but I would not recommend them for DIY.

[LAbb]

Originally Posted by tadpole

How are you planning on anchoring and hiding the liner overlap around the perimeter of the Pond? This is almost always done with rock. Use similar rock for your Waterfall. As far as I know, there are not any natural waterfalls in Louisiana, so any constructed waterfall would not look normal. There are other ways to anchor liner, but I would not recommend them for DIY.

I have no idea about how to construct a pool. That's why I wanted to ask everyone on here before I called and asked a contractor. I said waterfall but I meant a stream going down a hill. I would like to have the stream running down a hill which is probably at a 15-20 degree slope. My idea was to have a lot of bordering vegetation and something that looked like hardpan clay as the streambed and anchor. There are a lot of streams in the north Louisiana area I live which have "waterfalls" due to the stream being obstructed by large trees falling or a steep drop off where the red clay has fallen in. I wanted something like that so it would look like a natural stream but I may be trying to get something that is too customize and therefore cost prohibitive.

[tadpole]

The only way that I can think of for you to acheive the desired look would be to construct the stream bed with tinted concrete. I would, however, definitely not recommend this approach due to the eventual settling and cracking of the concrete and the subsequent leaks.

[LAbb]

Originally Posted by tadpole

The only way that I can think of for you to acheive the desired look would be to construct the stream bed with tinted concrete. I would, however, definitely not recommend this approach due to the eventual settling and cracking of the concrete and the subsequent leaks.

Oh well. It was a nice thought. Thanks for the info.

[STL Ponds and Waterfalls]

Have a pond builder come out and give you some ideas. Just make sure they have a portfolio of what you might want to have built in your yard.

[LAbb]

Originally Posted by STL Ponds and Waterfalls

Have a pond builder come out and give you some ideas. Just make sure they have a portfolio of what you might want to have built in your yard.

Thanks for the info.

[Fishwhiz]

You could do a veneer with your red clay mixed with either a soil pavement material or cement treated base. That will harden it enough to prevent the soil from continually eroding. Anytime you use cement, you will need to seal the surface or at least weather it in place until the water chemistry stabilizes.

That might be just enough to get you in trouble. I rarely recommend learning how to build a pond from online forums unless your expectations are low, but you can get some ideas.

[LAbb]

Originally Posted by Fishwhiz

You could do a veneer with your red clay mixed with either a soil pavement material or cement treated base. That will harden it enough to prevent the soil from continually eroding. Anytime you use cement, you will need to seal the surface or at least weather it in place until the water chemistry stabilizes.

That might be just enough to get you in trouble. I rarely recommend learning how to build a pond from online forums unless your expectations are low, but you can get some ideas.

I can guarantee you that I wasn't going to try and build it I was just seeing if it was possible to build a pond like I wanted.