Jul 16th, 2017

Author: donich_admin

Clearing around the pond

Our pond has been getting a bit overgrown near the stream inlet. At first we just admired the riot of wild flowers, but now it is getting to the stage where if it isn’t cleared out, it is going to turn into a swamp rather than a pond. So over the last few days I have been clearing a lot of the vegetation around it, and dredging some of the weeds out. I read somewhere that when you do this to a pond, you should always leave the debris lying by the waterside for 48 hours to allow any little creepie-crawlies to escape back into the water – so that is what I have done.

Anyway, I have now moved on to pulling out some of the overgrown rushes and irises from the slightly deeper water – and I can attest that the bottom of the pool is extremely slippery, because one handful came out suddenly and I slipped in up to my knees. Luckily my iPhone was in my trouser pocket and didn’t get wet – it is supposed to be waterproof, but not sure if that applies to dropping it into a slimy pond! I must have looked a right figure of fun walking back to the house dripping wet – I don’t think R got a photo of me though.

While I was doing this, I saw a fascinating sight – a large dragonfly had emerged from its nymph form and was drying its wings preparatory to take off. The discarded shell of the nymph was suspended from the reed beneath it. This all rather reminded me of “The Water Babies” and Tom playing with the water creatures in the river. I managed to read this as a child without in the least understanding the moral message of the book – it is all a bit sententious and I don’t suppose it is read much any more.