I have spoken before about how wonderful a wildlife pond can be, and what a good idea it can often be to add a pond to your property. I recently wrote this article for Treehugger on the subject – with simple tips for anyone who is thinking about creating a wildlife pond and would like some guidance:
What To Consider When Planning a Wildlife Pond
Speaking of ponds, I am off work next week to take a ‘break’ and work on jobs around here – in the garden and mostly on our barn conversion. One job that needs doing is removing duckweed from our pond.
We throw the duckweed on the side of the pond, to give anything we’ve scooped up with it a chance to escape. Then we let it dry out a little in the sun and feed it to our chickens as a tasty snack. Ours certainly seem to love it, which is great, because it is high in protein and great for them. The nutrient content will of course vary, and I have no way of measuring ours. But along with all their other snacks the chickens seem to do well when we give it to them.
I believe duckweed has been investigated and been shown promising in studies looking at protein rich feeds for domestic animals and fish, and may have applications particularly in developing nations. For us, it is a minor amount, not a main food source – but the potential is very interesting.
Anyway, I often include wildlife ponds in my designs. While not right for every site, they can be a boon to many and are at least worth considering in many cases.
Would you like to create an aquatic eden on your property? Get in touch to see how I can help.
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