Water features provide the opportunity to introduce water to even the most modest of gardens or back yards. A water feature could be the low cost alternative to a pond or simply the safer option due to the potential risk that a pond poses to your children.

Water features can come in a huge variety of forms but common choices for the homemade water feature are half barrels and ornamental pots. In reality, almost any receptacle that can be made watertight and has a suitable capacity could probably be used as part of a water feature. One advantage of this versatility is that it is very easy to design a feature that perfectly complements the themes currently used in your garden. These water features are typically self contained and the water receptacle can potentially be planted in the same way as a pond.

The type of installations above are generally mounted on the ground, above the surface. This may make for an easier installation but, it may be desirable when there is the ability to dig a recess, to have a water feature that is flush to the ground surface. These features require a reservoir being dug into the ground which can be left as an open pond but are typically covered with a weight supporting mesh. This mesh can then be covered with pebbles or some other form of decoration. When considering the type of water effect to have, some thought must be given to the size of reservoir. A six foot vertical spout of water may look impressive but falling into a reservoir with a six foot diameter means the slightest breeze will almost certainly result in a fairly rapid draining of the reservoir. For this very reason, the modest bubble fountain is a great way to introduce moving water on a smaller scale.

If designing and / or creating your own feature holds little appeal or is simply not practical, the great news is that there are a huge variety of ready to install features available from your local garden centre. There is no particular reason why any garden or yard cannot accommodate a feature somewhere if so desired.