Fall a good time to pump up the yard with water features
As summer wanes, it's time to enhance our gardens to grab the most from the last precious weeks and to make sure we're ready with major improvements for next year.
It's hard to beat a water feature for creating opportunities for relaxation and beauty or maybe even excitement. From fountains to koi ponds, waterfalls and even swimming pools, water creates music, color and chances for recreation.
Aquascape Inc. of St. Charles installs three types of water features, fountains, pondless waterfalls and ponds as well as selling products to other companies around North America.
Greg Wittstock, chief executive officer, likes large recreational ponds where families can also swim. But the typical backyard pond is 11-by-16 feet, and costs about $8,500 to $10,000 installed, according to a display at Aquascape's headquarters.
"Nothing makes a house feel like a home more than a water feature," said Wittstock. "It's like a fireplace in the winter."
Water features come in all price ranges from a few hundred dollars for a fountain from a big-box store to tens of thousands of dollars for a swimming pool. Here are some outstanding ones we found.
Fountain
A black, cast-iron urn, like ones used elsewhere in a garden, makes a good fountain or a landscape featured in this year's Barrington Country Garden & Antique Faire, said John Staab, landscape architect for Brickman Group of Long Grove. And it was less expensive than purchasing an appropriate large fountain.
"I wanted something tall and slender to fit the proportion of the new adjacent pergola," said Staab. "I thought it important to honor the architecture of the homes, which are generally in the Victorian era, so a cast iron feature seemed appropriate. The black color was the perfect contrast to the white elements in the many other garden features that I had designed."
Like anything, the price of a custom fountain varies considerably based not only on the fixture itself but also on the installation, which can be very simple or a complex underground system that helps with water management.
An important note from Staab: "Consider the splash of water that the fountain may impart in wind conditions if choosing its location near a pathway."
Ponds
Sean Swain, aquatics manager for Lurvey, based in Des Plaines with sites in Arlington Heights, Park City and Volo, is a great salesman for koi ponds because the one at his home has grown over the years.
"Traffic goes by, but all you hear is the beautiful tranquil sound of water," said Swain. "And the koi are living jewels or moving art. It's an oasis in the hecticness."
Start with the largest pond you have room and money for, said Swain, as hobbyists always want bigger ones.
Of course, besides concerns for the safety of children, pond owners worry about predators eating their fish. Swain has a deep spot for his fish to hide. Aquascape recommends hiding places under plants or in crevices and also sells motion-detecting "scarecrows" that shoot water and hopefully scare away raccoons and herons.
Lurvey, found at lurveys.com, specializes in selling kits for ponds, pondless waterfalls and a type of fountain known as pre-drilled basalt columns, which are volcanic stone. Pond kits start at $1,000, and homeowners can install basalt columns for $1,500 and up, with professional projects doubling that cost.
Waterfall
If you find magic in the sound of water or want to drown out traffic or noisy neighbors, what could beat a stream or waterfall?
"Most people who choose waterfalls want the sound of water," said George Janowiak, owner of Gem Ponds, based in Roselle. "It is the perfect way to relax and reconnect with nature in their own backyard. They get drawn in. It's the combination of water, plants and fish - a vacation at home every day."
Water features from Gem Ponds, gemponds.com, start in the $5,000 range.
People who want less maintenance and are not interested in fish often choose a pondless waterfall, which is ideal for smaller spaces, said Janowiak. He built a pond for himself more than 22 years ago, and has been installing them professionally for 15 years.
Swimming pool
Swimming pools fit into the category of "ultimate water features." Mike Murillo, sales director for Barrington Pools, says the price for a luxury pool starts at about $70,000.
And then, of course, you have to decide what you want your pool to look like and how it and the surrounding deck should function.
Barrington helps clients design pools that are classic, modern, free-form or even pondlike. Perhaps the most dramatic are "vanishing edge," where the water runs over the edge of the pool into a catch basin, making the most of a great view.
"Most pool designs can be scaled to fit a smaller yard and yards that aren't flat can often have terracing installed so that the hot tub may be slightly above or below the main pool for both an aesthetic as well as functional balance," according to the company's website, barrington-pools.com.
And be sure to check with your municipality for codes and regulations, including fencing requirements.
"Water brings joy and animation to a garden. It has a mesmerizing effect that brings attraction and a sense of meditation and repose to a space. A fountain is a perfect feature to organize a view, act as a centerpiece, or a surprise in an intimate corner.
John Staab, landscape architect, Brickman