Allotment pond

When we took over plot 8 a year ago we were delighted to see that it had a pond. Like the rest of the plot it was very overgrown with plants and weeds. The plot also had a serious drainage problem.

Once the drainage was sorted and we could walk around without getting stuck in the mud, we were able to see the pond better.  The pond is filled from a drain running from the top end of the plot and from the plot above us. When it gets full of water it flows out into a drain down the plot and out onto the lane. We think there is a spring somewhere which is why we have all this  water on the plot.

As we started digging over the plot we noticed a few frogs and toads   They were probably a bit disgruntled at being disturbed and losing their hiding places under stones and raised beds. Later on in the Spring we were delighted to see frog spawn in the pond.  We checked it regularly and looked forward to seeing tadpoles grow into frogs. Then we got a spell of dry weather, the water supply to the pond stopped, the pond dried up and the frog spawn disappeared.  This was when we discovered that the pond liner had a hole in it.

We decided that this year we would have a project to sort the pond out, clear the plant area, put a new liner in and replant. As there seemed to be an abundance of yellow lysimachia and yellow irises, I have been investigating other moisture loving plants which would grow in that area.

the pond is somewhere in the middle of this

Well so far this year we have been busy getting the vegetable beds prepared and haven't got around to thinking about how to tackle the pond.  And with all the rain we have had this year the pond has been quite full of water. So of course the frogs are back.  When I checked a week or so ago, there were four frogs and a good amount of spawn.  Since then the spawn seems to have increased.  I think there is both frog and toad spawn. The worry now of course is that if we get  another dry spell, the pond will dry up and we will lose the tadpoles again.

But now is not the right time to clear the pond.  We will wait until the time is right, when the tadpoles have grown up and we are not too busy with growing our vegetables.  I hope we will be able to work on it this year.

frog spawn in the pond