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Post by diamondgirl on Sept 6, 2014 15:47:19 GMT
I will give you a very quick history. My Granddad built a farm pond at every country home he ever lived in. As soon as we moved to the country when I was a kid, my Dad built a farm pond. Even my sister, who isn't an outdoor girl at all, had to build a tiny farm pond, when she lived in the country for a time. I lived in town, but I had to build a decorative pond, with a 5' waterfall, in the back yard. Ponds must be some kind of family obsession.
Well now I have my country home and you guessed it,,, I need a pond. I don't want another decorative pond. They are way too much work. What I really want is a small farm pond, that I can stock with minnows for mosquito control, and have my wonderful wildlife stop by for a drink. Right now the turkeys are drinking out of the water tank and I am so afraid one will fall in and drown one day. 
A pond would serve several purposes for me. Not only would I be able to watch the wildlife, but I would use the dirt to fill all the depressions I have, and get the lawn mower stuck in, every time I mow. Also the location I have chosen, is a place, that every time it rains, fills up with water, and is a shallow, muddy, breeding ground for tadpoles and mosquitos. Then the horses will drink that nasty, poopy, green, mosquitos tadpole water rather that walk 20 feet to the water tank. And I also would continue my family's apparent obsession with ponds.
My question is would this be a really bad idea for my horses? I know there was a thread on the other place about moving horses to a location that already had several ponds, that were frozen over, and there were concerns about them falling through the ice. I am not too worried about that, because my horses would know where the pond is, because it would be dug right in front of them. It also is only going to be around 3 feet deep in the middle.
I know they are going to take a drink from the pond. I got so upset about them drinking from the nasty puddle, I even put their water tank, right by the muddy pool, this summer, and they still would drink tadpole water. I know what you are thinking. Don't let them into that area when it is full of water. I don't have a lot of land to work with. I have to do this all by myself, and moving the fence isn't an option at this time, and that is where their hay is. Also, now that I know the lay of the land, I am working on clearing the downed buildings, and the trash off another more suitable area for their hay yard. The area that they are in now, will eventually be planted into grass for grazing.
Is there a big red flag I haven't considered in doing this? I will be doing all the digging by myself, with a shovel, by hand, so it won't even be finished this year. The sides will have a pretty steep drop off for algae control, but I will make a more gradual drop at one end, incase the horses want to get wet on a hot day.
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nhg
Junior Member
Posts: 2,429 
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Post by nhg on Sept 6, 2014 17:00:32 GMT
I like the idea. Lots of places around here have horses and have dugouts where the horses are. But we don't have much that can be an issue as far as the horses drinking it. In warmer climates I think that can be an issue? It's hot here in the summer but the winters kill a lot of insects and bacterias.
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Post by diamondgirl on Sept 6, 2014 17:21:57 GMT
I didn't think about bacteria. Good point. It does get a little cold here in the winter. Not anything like your winters. It will get below 0 degrees F, or -17 degrees C, but not for very many days usually. It does get warm in the summer though. It isn't uncommon for the daytime temps to climb to over 100 degrees F, or 37.7 degrees C for weeks. Thank you, I am going to have to do some research on that.
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Post by horselover4life on Sept 6, 2014 23:03:27 GMT
I think having a area on your property where water can drain to will give you a better long term "dry" area for the horses to be in. 
Dirty water....all animals {livestock} seem to love it. Cattle, horses are in the thousands surrounding my home. Water abounds too...much of Florida is "swampy".
The ranchers all have several huge water troughs of fresh, clean and clear water sources...where are the animals...standing in the dirty pond water having their fill or just standing there cooling off.
Does it get nasty looking...yes, at times.
I think the animals have enough sense to not drink from contaminated water. Bacteria...it must be in the water, it just must.
Sometimes you will see the animal standing in it to cool off but they go to the troughs to drink...they just seem to know when to drink and when to not.
On the other hand...we all have bacteria in our bodies normally so maybe it is less of a deal than we think.
Research, yes, think you need to do some.
If you have a farm supply store local, stop in and speak to them about what you are thinking of doing. Sometimes local know-how is the best adviser for what works and what does not...
I know I go speak with the guys at my local store about issues in my area and how to approach something...so far they have not steered me wrong. 
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Post by horselady on Sept 6, 2014 23:48:54 GMT
Everyone needs a pond on their property and the horses love drinking and swimming in it. and so does other wildlife. when we purchased our land the swap became our pond. and it was 14 feet deep , and i am sure over the years has gotten shallow but so what. the fish we bought to stock it are huge and yes we have friends that fish out the big bass and sun fish every year Attachments:
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Post by diamondgirl on Sept 6, 2014 23:49:04 GMT
I do have a couple of pond owners that I know that I can talk to. One of them told me not to bother with a pond because I would loose all my fish the first time we flooded. I explained that I wasn't going to have game fish and he couldn't understand why I would bother with a pond then. That is why I wanted to stock it with minnows. They are naturally already in the river system, that way if they escape they will just fit in no matter where they go. I haven't decided what I will use, or even if I seal it yet. We have fine, heavy clay soil. I might not even have to seal it, to get it to hold water. Of course I do understand that the area might not hold water once I dig through the top soil.
Here is the area during and several days after a couple inches of rain. 
I even dug a trench and got rid of a lot of the water, but the spot where the pole is laying down never drains, and will stay wet for weeks. |
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Post by horselady on Sept 7, 2014 1:08:36 GMT
Are you going to make the pond near the fence where the water is now. OOORRRR take the dirt from farther away and fill in that area and slope the field to fill in the area where the water is.
If you dig a pond it will certainly dry out that paddock area. and you really need to do that. it is a necessity at this point to get your horses out of that mud.
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Post by diamondgirl on Sept 7, 2014 3:43:28 GMT
HL I love your pond. I want grass growing right up to the edge of mine too. I was just going to start digging where the low spot was by the fence. The area out by the creek, where the all the trees are, was the sight for the original farmstead. The original owners had built the level of the ground up some, to try to keep it from flooding. It didn't work out, and they flooded over and over. 70 years ago they built the house we now live in. They located it on higher ground, and also had the ground built up an extra 5 feet. In the second picture to the far left side is the old cedar tree that stood by their old front door.
The lowest area is right along the fence, and because I will only be using a shovel, I think I will take the easy road and start digging in the low spot. I also want to finish up the trench I started that will drain the excess water to the ditch. We have had one other rain, this summer, where we got about inch and a half and the hay field drained much better that time.
The lot is rarely flooded because right now we are in an extreme drought, but that can change at any time. (I think) I want to be ready when it does. Of course I do understand that if we get a flash flood everything, except (hopefully) where the house is standing will be underwater. It has happened. The last time was 15 years ago. In that case, the house was on a small island, and the little pond won't matter. That's another reason I have the yard fenced off. The horses will just have to stay right by the house and use the garage as a barn until the water goes down. I also have arrangements with a friend of mine who lives on a hill. I can board them with him if things ever get too wet.
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Post by horselover4life on Sept 7, 2014 11:10:35 GMT
Diamond...before putting shovel to dirt...
Go to the US Geological maps and get the maps of the land terrain for your farm. They are a free download and printable.
With scale and much information you can use to know where to start digging, how far to go down and what path the water will take based on the lay of the land.
It isn't just the digging out, but the "where do I put the dirt" filling in other "depressions" that could get you...
The maps are updated pretty often....
I know my county does our area with the federal governments assistance it seems like every 6 - 9 months...remember sink-holes are a problem in my state so think they use this to see if the land is shifting at all as a "tip-off" there may be a problem starting.
Just a thought....
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Post by diamondgirl on Sept 7, 2014 15:54:04 GMT
Diamond...before putting shovel to dirt...
Go to the US Geological maps and get the maps of the land terrain for your farm. They are a free download and printable.
With scale and much information you can use to know where to start digging, how far to go down and what path the water will take based on the lay of the land.
It isn't just the digging out, but the "where do I put the dirt" filling in other "depressions" that could get you...
The maps are updated pretty often....
I know my county does our area with the federal governments assistance it seems like every 6 - 9 months...remember sink-holes are a problem in my state so think they use this to see if the land is shifting at all as a "tip-off" there may be a problem starting.
Just a thought.... I wish I would have known to do that before I fenced in that area in the first place. That is the area with the worst standing water on the whole place. I will look it up and try to make an informed decision. Thank you.  |
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Post by horselady on Sept 8, 2014 0:32:59 GMT
Even tho you might want a small pond using a shovel is back breaking work. when you decide where and what you want have someone with a small machine come in and dig it out. and try not to get that close to the fence as the water will cause the fence to fall.
and it will have to be graded so the water does not go anywhere else but into the pond.
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Post by diamondgirl on Sept 8, 2014 3:22:35 GMT
HL: I went to the US Geological survey map, but, I am sorry, I couldn't figure it out. There is limited information for Pawnee County. BUT!!! while I was looking around I found out that they had updated Google earth, and there was newer satellite pictures of my little farm, taken last April. I thought that was very exciting.
While I do know, it will be lots of work, I do think I will start out, at least, with the shovel. I have had it with men who own dirt moving machinery. They always want to do things their own way, and also, they want to do things when they want to. When I was so badly flooded I called a company and asked them to dig a trench to the ditch so the water would drain. They said they would be out as soon as my ground dried out. So..... I got my shovel and dug my own trench. They have never called me back to schedule a time.
I know it may take me years to dig my pond, or I might just be forced to buy a real tractor, with a scoop so I can really move some dirt. Actually, I am learning. I changed the oil, oil filter, spark plug, and greased my garden tractor this spring. I am learning how to be more self sufficient every day. I didn't know anything about equipment maintenance, because Honey always did it. Now that he is pretty much bedfast, I am learning, and, I like being able to do some of these things. One of there days I might just be confident enough in myself, to own a real tractor, and I will know how to run it, and take care of it.
I don't want a very big farm pond, just a little one where the barn swallows can get mud, the toads can have tadpoles, and the turkeys and pheasants, can get a drink without risk of falling in. I don't want big fish, but just minnows to control the mosquito larvae. A bonus would be, it would be water to ride the horses through. The other bonus would be, if I could fill all the depressions and not have to pull the tractor mower, out of a hole, with the pick-up, every time I mow.
Thank you for all of your support and information. And I am sorry I could figure out what I was looking at on the geological survey map. |
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Post by horselover4life on Sept 8, 2014 15:13:43 GMT
Started this this morning...ran out of time to figure the rest of it out...
I found it....
publicrecords.onlinesearches.com/KS_Pawnee.htm
When this page opens, click on your county, then click on "GIS & Mapping"...these are drop down choices to make from boxes.
Now the next screen should open and in that one you put your personal information of name on your deed, property plat #, address or things of that nature.
This should open up another screen that will be your property and those pieces that surround you. A list of things you can add or remove such as roads, elevation, flooding plains, 100 year flooding plains, roads and more should be available if it is anything like ours...
OK...other than that....Home Depot and Lowe's.
By me they RENT tractors with buckets, augers and backhoe attachments by the hour, day, weekend, week, month....not terribly expensive either I thought.
Next time I need to sink 200 fence posts I will be renting this machine and save our backs some exhausting work!!
You though do need to know how to grade after digging a hole so you channel the flow of water into that pond and not flood your home or barn, shed or other buildings...that part I have no clue about.
My hubby thankfully though understands all that sort of stuff so it is "his department" to work the magic...same as I wanted a barn. He figured out all the details to give me what I wanted...
Love my hubby, he is the greatest even though I grump about and at him at times...he makes my world happy!! 
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Post by diamondgirl on Sept 8, 2014 18:55:16 GMT
Thank you HL4L. got a little ways before my server crashed. I need to give my slow internet a bit of a break then try again. I was thinking, if I can't fully explore this at home, I can always run to the court house. A friend of mine works there, and she is always helpful. There are advantages to living in a small town. |
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Post by lorddaxter on Sept 9, 2014 13:02:57 GMT
Ok I'm not much help as I wouldn't know where to start BUT
I love ponds too, I want a pond, you are amazing for even considering taking on something this size, alone, with a shovel, maybe even slightly crazy(in a nice way)I am beyind impressed and you give me hope for myself:)
When you said pond I imagined something small but wow you have big intentions, it's going to look amazing, my friend in scotland had something a little smaller than what you have planned, she put a cute little bridge over it, it looked amazing, just to give you more work lol!
I didn't know you could hire moving eqpt like that from Home Depot, do they give you a lesson too?
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Post by horselover4life on Sept 9, 2014 14:34:50 GMT
I didn't know you could hire moving eqpt like that from Home Depot, do they give you a lesson too?
I would imagine they must give you some guidance in how the equipment works....
It is amazing what is "rent-able" by me.
I have seen more nice bucket tractors for sale or sitting in pawn shops lately too....
Nice size tractors that can do hard work...not just cut the grass...
Several things on our bucket list...
Free-standing garage...
Large farm tractor with bush hog or pasture cut mower along with a bucket-loader attachment.
Need more fence put up to separate my ring so my son can ride safer...
I want another well so I can water when rainy season quits and the grass stops growing so well...not kill the house well.
We all want 2 more horses so we can ride as a family....
Now to just figure out how to "do" all of our wishes and wants.....sigh. 
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Post by lorddaxter on Sept 9, 2014 15:28:57 GMT
Bummer if you were closer to me you could free lease Ira, I wouldn't pan Isis off on you lol!
I'd love a tractor, so expensive though
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nhg
Junior Member
Posts: 2,429
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Post by nhg on Sept 9, 2014 19:10:29 GMT
I want my next acreage to have a pond so I can have crested (pom-pom) ducks. But I'd want it out of the horse area. They enjoy getting filthy muddy too much and it can be so hard to get it out off their legs.
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Post by diamondgirl on Sept 10, 2014 0:00:38 GMT
My pond won't be all that big, and I really need the dirt, and the drainage. I thought about getting a goose or two, but then I remembered how much I hated Dads geese, so I think I'll pass on that. It would probably be a good thing to have a few geese, because they love grasshoppers, and the grasshoppers are terrible this year. I figure the coyotes would eat them anyway, and I don't want to feed the coyotes geese, because they just love possum, and I want them to eat them instead. Odd,,, someone so tenderhearted would say such a thing, right? Well there is nothing I can do to stop, those naughty coyotes, from eating the poor possums, and that means I don't have to trap the poor darlings, and remove them.
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redzip
Junior Member
Posts: 1,701
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Post by redzip on Sept 10, 2014 3:04:25 GMT
We have a beautiful pond on our property that was already here when we bought the land.
I do love it bc when we have heavy rains, etc, everything eventually drains into our pond.
It also attracts all kinds of birds, geese, etc. and deer come to drink regularly.
I agree with HL, have it professionally dug once you decide on a location.
Then they can spread, and grade, the fill in other low lying areas, and help direct run off.
Let me find a picture of our pond and will post when I do smileys-gardening-586516
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