Walking the (pond) talk

Restoring choked up old ponds on home ground was a long held dream. Credit J McNaughton.

I have, for five years now, had the privilege of visiting farms up and down East Anglia to extoll the ecological virtues of digging and restoring ponds. I've overseen some fabulous pond projects in this time, from complexes of newly created ponds, to large and complicated pond restorations and numerous 'ghost' ponds brought lovingly back to life. The enthusiasm of the pond-embracing community is infectious and it wasn't long before I too got the urge to 'put my money where my mouth was' and get digging.

I started by digging two new (albeit garden) ponds at home here in rural NW Essex. These were much appreciated by the local herps and before long the garden was literally hopping with tiny toads, grateful frogs, silky smooth newts and - a new record here - protected great crested newts. I even saw grass snakes in the meadow area this summer for the first time!

Creating two new clean-water garden ponds seemed like a good place to start, but the two old choked-up farmland ponds needed attention too. Credit: J McNaughton.

Spurred on by the apparently instantaneous ecological response to 'just adding clean water', I decided it was time to turn my attentions to two redundant, overgrown farmland ponds on the boundary of my modest acreage. These were typical of the type of ponds we often come across on farms. The animals which in times past had relied upon such ponds for water in a sheep: corn husbandry system had long since left the local fields. Without the impetus to keep the ponds open it didn't take long for the trees to take over and suck the water, light and oxygen out of them. No longer could toads be heard calling earnestly in spring, no more did newts display enthusiastically, waggling their crested tails in the dappled shallows.

Through the DLL pond project here at FWAG East I am lucky enough to know local pond contractor Andrew Hull, who arrived one sunny week in late September to help me press go on my long-held dream of restoring these two old ponds. Following some tree work - and with Andrew on digger and me on the dumper truck - we made short work of what had previously appeared to be an overwhelming task.

The newly restored ponds are only just entering their first spring but I already have a direct inkling of the excitement such work brings. I am now richer for having the easy excuse to escape the desk and pop for a peek at how the ponds are doing. The welcome sight of a new diving beetle or frog, the precious anticipation of what aquatic plants may arise from the old seedbank and the suspense of whether the great crested newts will find the ponds this year (- fingers crossed!); all mine to savor.

The old pond by the house has now been cleared and will provide breeding habitat for amphibians once again. Credit J McNaughton.

I made a short film to document the project for Affinity Water which kindly helped fund the work through its new 'Rooting for Wildlife' fund. Hopefully the film captures just how fun and rewarding this work can be - balanced against how vital it is for our wildlife when carried out sensitively. Enjoy the magic!