water feature in a container?

[beach chick]

don't know if this is the right place for this... but I want to make a water feature in a container (ideally one of those fake 'lead' trough things).
I've read that if its deep enough you can literally just fill it up with water, bung in a floating plant, and bob's your auntie - you don't need filter, pump, etc etc etc. top it up from time to time to cover what's evaporated.

does anyone know if this would be ok? I cant get running water/electricity to the spot I have in mind without major disruption, and really just want something cheap that the birds and bugs will like. on the other hand, I dont really fancy a mosquito farm!
thanks for any advice

[SimonCole]

You need a pump to get rid of the mosquito larvae because it sucks them into the filter, unless you go for a huge tub with fish or something predatory inside. The problem you then have is that lilies don't like fountains because the upper leaves can get too wet, so I'd go for marginals like rushes.
If you go pond dipping, you may find water beetles and the like that eat mosquito larvae and you could have a still water.

[rustylady]

Depends on what you mean by a water feature! Do you want something ornamental or a wildlife haven, cos they don't always go together. To be self-maintaining a pond needs to be quite large, and have at least one fairly deep area (small shallow containers tend to overheat and dry out).

[beach chick]

I've got a slab of concrete at the front of a bed, with an old pump next to it. the concrete covers a water tank (sadly empty). I want something ornamental really, but read in a RHS mag in the waiting room at the doctors (which is why I dont have the article any more) that you could do it this way. then I thought it would be nice for the birds and the dragonflies, and if I put a big stone it that would provide somethng for frogs/bugs to hop out on.
but maybe its a non-starter...

[Two_Sheds]

fish will eat frogspawn, so you can't really have fish + frogs together. Fish will eat skeeter larvae though.
I gave up trying to plan the ideal pond, so now I have an old bath sunk on my lottie, with a water lily, iris etc (all FAR to big for the space). there is a fish in there but I never see it unless I drain the whole thing out (nasty stinky winter job). I have at least one frog in there, but no spawn. It needs topping up only in v.hot weather, cos the lily leaves seem to prevent evaporation. The water is fairly clear now but I do have to scoop out lots of blanket weed.
Personally I find ponds a lot of bother, and probably wouldn't do one again

[rustylady]

If you're going to have a pond it really does need to be big enough to be self-maintaining (or almost). Small tubs, baths, pots etc. get too hot, dry out quickly and can't support much in the way of plant or animal life (except mozzies). I would say a bath tub sunk into the ground is probably the minimum size you should go for, and this should have stones or rocks sunk into it to vary the levels for the plants and also to allow the frogs, newts, hedgehogs (and occasional Yorkshire Terriers) an escape route.

[Two_Sheds]

why would you want a Yorkie to escape ??!!

[rustylady]

why would you want a Yorkie to escape ??!!

Because it belonged to a neighbour, and I hate killing things unnecessarily.

[beach chick]

can sympathise with both pro and anti Yorkie stance!!!

ok what about if I got one of those solar powered fountain things, would that be enough to disrupt the water and stop mozzies breeding?
we want to have a proper lake (or v. large pond) eventually, but it will have to wait til we have the money to excavate etc and the house needs too much doing at the mo.