Lake Big Fish: Wet and Wild
Wildscape Evolution
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Lake Big Fish: Wet and Wild
Wildscape Evolution
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Here are some pictures to give you an idea of how Lake Big Fish has changed over the years. |
1995A lot of little fish and some plants. This was before I knew about illegal water plants (if you look carefully, you can see Water Hyacinth and Salvia). The beginnings of the flower gardens. |
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1996The cattails are starting to take over. Moonflowers cover the western fence. The waterfall is still a train tunnel. Along with an external filter, the pond depends on water lilies, pickerl rush, lizard tail and a selection of floating plants to keep the water fish-safe. And, in a surprise for north Texas, this was a winter with snow! |
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1997The fish spawned! Lots of babies! |
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1999Morning glories crawled from the arbor across the pond. It's a jungle pond and the cats love it! The cattails were taking over, so when the pond was cleaned in the spring most were tossed on the compost heap. But some did make it to a tub garden in the front yard. The surrounding garden starts to go Texas-native. |
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2000Well, 2000 was a bust as far as computer-related disasters or the world coming to an end, but Lake Big Fish had a Y2K disaster that, while not of earth-shattering proportions, was pretty darned big. Plano, Texas, has a rodent problem. There are Norway Rats and Roof Rats living throughout Plano and Collin County. Summer 2000 was very dry, in fact, it was a drought. And those rodents went looking for a new place to call home. Well, they thought they'd found a ratty heaven in Lake Big Fish. Lots of water, succulent cattails and iris, and even lots of bird nests to raid in the arbor. They tunneled between the pond liner and the frame, which of course meant that they gnawed holes in the liner. I first noticed the problem when the water level in the pond kept dropping. Then I saw one rat. And then a second rat. This meant war ... an all-out war using bio-chemical weapons. I called eco-safe (eco-safe specializes in the control of roaches, ants, silverfish, beetles, rats and mice using less ecologically harmful products and techniques). Bait boxes were deployed. The holes were patched. The waterfall was rebuilt (no more train tunnel).
Identification
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2001A year later and the main pond is still recovering from the rodent invasion. With help from some friends, the pond was drained and the liner replaced. Instead of building the waterfall from loose stone, a pre-cast waterfall was installed. The edges of the pond were stepped using layers of flat stone; this allows small animals easy access to the water, and also makes it easier for them to climb out if they fall in. |
2002This was a maintenance year. I broke my arm in early February, and as a result didn't undertake any major landscaping for the year. I didn't do a lot of photography, either. In fact, I didn't do much of anything in 2002. |
2003Major hailstorms in the spring destroyed a lot of the plantings. And what the hail didn't pound, was ripped out. Yep, the standard landscaping that comes with every house in Plano is gone. All of the Indian Hawthorne was ripped out, the arbor was brought under control, and several trees were removed. The habitat is no longer a jungle!A palet of stone took up residence in the front yard as reconstructive landscaping began. Lots of lantana, verbena, cone flowers and other native plants were used to replace the shrubs. A fourth water tub is added to the front yard. Bird feeders are migrated from the back yard to the front yard. The cats love it! |
2004Reconstruction is finally completed! The front yard is a riot of blooms from early spring to late fall. Rabbits are now regular visitors. Another snowy winter. |
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2005The bullfrog tadpoles that I tossed in the pond last year are now frogs. There are at least 6 of them; they start singing at dusk and keep it up all night. |
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2006The worst drought in years had north Texas in its grip; watering restrictions and heat combined to kill any but the hardiest plants. Lake Big Fish became a haven for all sorts of urban wildlife: rabbits, owls, possums, hawks, all sorts of smaller birds, squirrels and the occassional coyote (they stay out of the back yard, but have been spotted drinking from the water tubs in the early morning or late at night). The pond flurished, but many of the cannas and sunflowers didn't make it. The frogs continued to expand their territory; they haven't quite made it to the tubs in the front yard, but they are getting close! |
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Unless otherwise noted, all text and images on this site are
Copyright © 1994-2006
by
Liz Gensheimer
Last updated Sunday, 14-Jan-2007 16:24:34 CST
