Pond water can sometimes turn cloudy and green, making it impossible to see the bottom of the pond. Solutions are:

• Install UV lamps. At least 2 lamps with at least 3 Watts per 1000 litres of water.
• Test the GH value and adjust, if necessary, to 12odH or higher. This is often the cause. Maintain the GH value at about 12odH all year round. You can use a product such as GH Plus to raise the value. Mineral-rich water is often crystal clear.
• Test the KH value and adjust this, if necessary, to at least 5. If the KH value is too low, you should adjust the KH value first and then, one week later, adjust the GH value to at least 12odH.
• Adding bacteria on a weekly basis stimulates a biological equilibrium and restores the natural equilibrium.
• Read more about pond maintenance here.

This means that your water is crystal clear! The safest method is to remove them by hand. Thread algae appear when the biological equilibrium has been disturbed. This means that there are either not enough aquatic plants in the pond (there should be at least 30%) or there are too many nutrients (nitrates, phosphates or ammonia) in the pond water. It can also occur because the water conditions are not optimal for growing aquatic plants. For that reason, you should regularly test the GH, KH and pH values. The GH value is particularly important. Use a product such as GH Plus to raise the value to 12odH. Adding bacteria on a weekly basis stimulates a biological equilibrium and restores the natural equilibrium. Read more about pond maintenance here.

You should test the GH, KH and pH values of the pond water. The GH value is particularly important. Use a product such as GH Plus to raise the value to 12odH.

Are the aquatic plants growing in a large enough pond basket and in the right soil? Are the aquatic plants getting enough nutrients? For example, Pontederia and Butomus require more nutrients than plants such as yellow Iris. To treat this, phosphate-binding Bio Granulate can be added to the soil so that the plant always receives a sufficient supply of nutrients.

If oxygen plants do not grow well, the underlying cause could be the water quality or the amount of CO2 in the pond water. The GH value may not be lower than 12odH. You can raise the CO2 level of the pond water by using a bacterial preparation to restore the biological equilibrium. Adding a product such as Mineral Power also stimulates plant growth. Read more about pond maintenance here.

This is not caused by algal growth. The cause may be that there are too many fish in the pond or that the fish are kicking up the soil. A good solution can be the installation of a filter with a pump. This sieves dirt out of the water by drawing the water from the pond floor to a biological or mechanical filter which has filter materials ranging from coarse to fine.

Has the pond been filled with ground water? That often means that the iron content is too high. This can turn the water brown or murky within a few days. That is why it is always advisable to use mains water. Are you still considering using ground water? Always have it thoroughly analysed before use.

Test the GH, KH and pH values of the pond water. The GH value is particularly important. Use a product such as GH Plus to raise the value to 12odH. Read more about pond maintenance here.

How to install the filter, pump and UV lamps. Add a good-quality bacterial preparation once a week. If a lot of organic waste accumulates on the pond floor you can always use a natural sediment remover.

The water lily is perhaps the most beautiful pond plant! This plant needs a pond basket of at least 25 cm, or even better 40 cm. Furthermore, a water lily likes fertile soil. That is why a special soil with blue clay is available. You can also use clay pellets to enrich the pond soil. You can stimulate plant growth by adding mineral tablets, for example Mineral Power.

Make sure that the water lily is planted in a sunny spot that is not too deep. A water lily growing at a depth of 50 cm will produce many more blooms than one at a depth of 150 cm.

Tip: Perhaps your pond is too deep? Place an empty plant basket upside down under the water lily's plant basket. This easily sets the plant about 60 cm higher.

The plants are certainly flourishing if they are growing well. This means that the water quality is excellent and that the plant has been planted properly in the right location. These fast-growing plants extract a lot of nutrients from the water, thereby reducing algal growth to the very minimum. It is a bit like the garden - sometimes you need to do some extra pruning, just removing dead flowers is not enough. Plants which grow too fast can simply be pruned back. Do this in stages and do not remove half of the pond plants in one go. This would disturb the biological equilibrium too radically and cause all kinds of problems. Make sure to maintain the GH value at 12odH, for example with GH Plus. Read more about pond maintenance here.

Not every pond is suitable for every type of fish. Do you have a natural looking pond with different types of water plants and oxygen plants? Then know that koi carp, grass carp, goldfish and snipe are not a good choice, because these are herbivores. The sturgeon can, on the other hand, swim back into the water plants and die. These are all beautiful pond fish but require a different kind of pond. Good fish for a natural looking pond are the bindweed, Sarasa goldfish, Schubunkin, roach, minnow and tench.

Always fill your pond with mains water! Groundwater is usually unsuitable because it often contains high levels of phosphates, nitrates, ammonia or iron. All of these substances lead to extremely annoying algal growth or water that is constantly brown and murky. Mains water often contains some form of lime which is necessary for maintaining a flourishing pond. However, after filling the pond you will also need to supplement the tap water with lime, in most cases with products such as GH Plus. The GH value should be 12odH. You will need a bacterial preparation to keep the water biologically active. In this way, you will create and maintain a biological equilibrium. During or shortly after this, you should introduce the plants. Allow the pond water to reach optimum conditions and the fish can be introduced a few days later.

That depends on two things:

• Do you want to have fish in the pond? In that case, in light of potentially cold winter weather, opt for a depth of 80 cm to 1 metre.
• Do you want water lilies? Opt for a depth of 80 cm. That is also a good depth for oxygen plants.

A pond should always have different depths or zones. At the edges, a depth of 10-20 cm is good for setting plants that look as if they have grown there naturally. A zone with a depth of 80 cm is suitable for oxygen plants and water lilies, and a zone with a depth of 100 cm or more is a suitable place for the fish to hibernate.

Take care: a pond with a depth of 20-30 cm can be tricky because the water warms up and cools off very quickly. This often leads to irritating algal growth and it can be difficult or even impossible to achieve a biological equilibrium. Find tips on building a pond here.

Depending on the type of pond, this can often be the most difficult part. An elegant pond with sleek, straight lines can be finished off with a border of hard stone. Draw up an attractive planting plan for a natural pond, keeping the transition between the pond and the garden as natural as possible.

Don't forget to construct a shallow zone of 15 -20 cm deep and about 40 cm wide so that you can plant marginal plants. Find tips on building a pond here. Need even more inspiration on building a pond? Take a look here or on Pinterest or visit a garden centre or pond specialist.