The Pond Rock Garden

The pond garden in its earlier incarnations.

Our pond has gone through several transformations in the few years we've lived at San Simeon.

The pond garden in its current incarnation.

The first was to give away the large koi fish we inherited with the house. Starting out as winter snow birds, we thought it cruel to leave the koi unattended over summer. We put in feeder goldfish.

We inherited iris and lotus plants that beautifully choked the shallow end of the pond and flowered magnificently. But one summer the water level valve I set up didn't work and the pond dried up. (A previous summer, the hose to the valve burst and we got a $500 water bill.) We lost the aquatic plants, goldfish and minnows.

We drained the pond, took out the cobbles, pressure washed and resurfaced it. The cobbles were used to cover the pond garden area in a failed attempt to keep little critters from burrowing in the dirt. The primary yellow and blue in which the pond's cement lining had been painted gave way to the more muted, pale red-brown. Goldfish were added and eleven of them have thrived over the last years.

Nine of the eleven goldfish in our pond

I originally had twenty-four fish, but I counted a lot less after I startled a crane -- yes, a water fowl -- that was feasting upon my pet fish. The crane flew away to the north. And that was after we constructed the gazebo over the pond. How had that crane seen the pond, much less the fish?

The pond gazebo has had two incarnations. The first covering was a type of grass mat. Winds would tear it up. It was replaced with black shade fabric and that stuff lasts really well.

Over years, more and more vegetation was thinned in the garden behind the pond. Sage which littered leaves into the pool was removed. Aloes, green agaves and bougainvillea needed thinning, until a few weeks ago we decided to clear it all out. The rest of our yard is the beneficiary. We have them transplanted and blooming on all sides. (I never figured the bougainvillea root would survive. It's blooming.)

The bottom of this photo reveals the secret:
metal fabric mesh covered by landscaping cloth.

Now with the new year, the last of the aloes and agaves were removed and the big tree stump finally was rotten enough to pull out. The only plant survivors are two bougainvilleas that are madly blooming because of our mild winter, a large golden barrel cactus, a tall cactus I planted to replace the one that froze a couple of years back, and a volunteer sapling that has grown into a tree.

Shari decided on a type of crushed rock (5/8ths Apache red), we got two yards delivered, and I really got to work removing the cobbles and relocating them by the wheelbarrow-full to the oleanders by the driveway in an effort to keep pack rats discouraged.

I have learned that unless you like critters burrowing in your crushed rock garden, not only munching on ornamentals and leaving holes in the ground, but also amassing huge mounds of dirt tailings from their tunneling, it's necessary to cover the area with critter-proof material. Little critters burrowed in hidden holes. (One of my first jobs when we took occupancy was to clear out a pack rat nest.)


This lesson I learned during open warfare with mice tunneling in my crushed rock covered area outside the kitchen window. Every other morning I'd find a new pile of ugly dirt on my yavapai coral rock. Finally I covered the entire area with a layer of metal fabric (nicer and finer mesh than chicken wire), then landscape fabric on top (holds the crushed rock so it weighs down the mesh). I used this same technique for the pond's rock garden.

Our fledgling rock collection.

This corner of our backyard is the east which direction is associated with deities. At least in India, the images of gods always face east, and they say east is the best direction to face when meditating. (I wouldn't know, but I do it.) Ever since our offer to purchase the property was accepted, we have had a Ganesha in this corner. Now that the pond garden area is cleared out, Ganesha is more happily prominent, even though he is facing west.

Shari's plan is to collect and display specimen rocks in our new pond garden. We bought an amethyst geode last gem and mineral show season, and we got a few smaller ones earlier this year. Every long journey begins with a small step. You can quote me on that.