Lisa wants a pond...

The Arboretum's resident Sagittarius is a water lover... and, as you may have read in the Critters posting, an animal lover, too.

And did I mention she loves water?

I remember when I loved water. The swimming pool Grandpa Trueman built for his grandkids, and the very large horse trough that preceeded it. The hose, the sprinkler. And, wow, the ocean when my parents took me and my brothers there. Even freezing Lake Michigan was tortury fun.

Best ever? Deer Creek, the few times my mom let me go a mile away with my cousins. We never swam there, but we fished, and watched the water bugs play. I loved that.

Things I hate about the water: The shock of cold wetness, the likelihood of mosquitos, and Marco Polo.

Hopefully, I'll never be forced to play that stupid game again. That leaves the cold and mosquitos....

Except, now I've learned mosquitos are not inevitable with a pond. My (just-retired) friend, pond owner Gary Gaynor, swears by mosquito fish, and he should know. He's built himself a small lake in his yard so he can fish the days away.

Seemingly, mosquito fish are also beloved by the people who belong to Tucson Water Gardeners, a local club that promotes... well, gardening in water.


L. and I did their tour yesterday, seven (?) water gardens, ranging from one about the size of two washtubs, up to a monster holding 350,000 gallons. Didn't get bit once....

So that leaves the shock of cold wetness. Lisa assures me that the water in the pond we're going to build someday will warm up in the summer, or at least the cool water will feel good enough in 100+° heat that I'll be happy to join her in the water. Maybe she's got a point.

Anyway, I'm onboard. L. has been studying about natural-style ponds, that use a shallow bed of water plants to keep the water clear and algae-free. Sounds good to me. Who likes slimy water?

Not even Lisa.

Artists' concept. Pond would be slightly larger.