It took the whole morning. Before we began we made sure that the two of us could get that larger tank up into the garden. Then we needed to empty the tank and save all the water. Our large garbage cans served as holding tanks and several smaller cans held all the plants. With the new tank in place we returned all the water and as many of the snails as possible! The additional water needed came from the rainwater tanks just a few feet away. Then the plants went back in. By afternoon the Helvola lilies were blooming again.
Water garden plants really are the most forgiving. It took 24 hours for the water to settle down and become crystal clear again and for the lily pads to find a new space in the water. Now they have so much more room to spread out.
I also removed the Texas mud baby, Echinodorus cordifolius because, much as I adore its white flowers, it seemed to attract blackfly. For the time being it has been de-bugged and is settled into a smaller water garden along with some dwarf papyrus which had rooted in the water.
More changes are underway in other parts of my garden. Show me a gardener who has his garden exactly how he wants it and is just willing to sit back with smug satisfaction. I doubt you will find one.
Nice change out, your tank garden looks so good. I've been considering this for a while.
ReplyDeleteAny gardener who is satisfied with the garden might not actually be a gardener. Look forward to seeing more of your changes. I'm removing perennials which turned out to be slackers in August and adding more agaves and natives.
I'm still "building " my garden but I agree wholeheartedly--we are never DONE. Why would one want to be???
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Yes, I have also experienced this situation. In many place plants grow in cans. They look beautiful than solely cans with water.
ReplyDeleteAnd then came the rains. Do you have any issues with your water garden ponds overflowing when we get the (admittedly rare) 3-4 inches at a time?
ReplyDeleteMy mother in law is always lamenting how her next door neighbor (an avid gardener) will get some garden bed looking (in my mother in law's opinion) wonderful and then she'll go and rip it all out to start over again.
ReplyDeleteWater gardens are very changeable, I find. There's always a new bog plant to try out, or a new water lily to grow. And of course space is fixed, so when something new goes in, something must come out. It keeps things interesting.
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