Pond Ponderings – A Young Gardener’s Pond for Nature
03/06/2026
By Flint – Flintstone Gardens
At @flintstone gardens, creating a space where wildlife can thrive is something that genuinely matters to me. The pond is just one part of a much bigger ecosystem I’ve built for both nature and the people who enjoy the garden. We already share the space with loads of birds, a hedgehog, field mice, bats, pollinators and countless other tiny creatures that keep everything ticking over. We also have a resident Robin visiting several times a day.
This pond started back in April with a small budget preformed liner. I added some garden rubble to create hiding spots and underwater caves, planted three affordable marginal plants, and filled it using rainwater collected from the water butt. I have also added hornwort, and some supermarket watercress.
It’s tucked away in the larger wild garden, under a twisty hazel tree, near my hedgerow habitat and surrounded by wildflowers. Around the edge, most of the plants are either wildflowers or self-seeded plants I’ve carefully moved from other parts of the garden, including a fern from beside the water butt and Cranesbill Geranium from near the back gate. A few additions, like the fleabane and Sweet William, came from my local plant grower, Ministry of Plants.
Fast forward two months and the pond is already properly alive. Natural visitors include water fleas, mosquito larvae, and midge larvae. I’ve also introduced water snails, which are already laying eggs, and native toad tadpoles from a licensed specialist breeder in Scotland.
Hopefully, the future toadlets will enjoy life here because I’ve made the garden as toad-friendly as possible. Plus, I’m definitely not complaining if they help deal with the slugs.
My first pond was built during lockdown when I was 11 as part home-ed project. I think it’s really important that young people get the chance to connect with nature, whether that’s growing a few pollinator-friendly plants in pots on a windowsill or balcony, or creating a larger wild space in a garden.
As Sir David Attenborough said: “If children don’t understand nature, they won’t protect it. And if they don’t protect it, who will?”. Nature isn’t just something to look at. It’s something worth looking after.
Flint has a BTEC L1 and L2 Hort, and currently studying BTEC Countryside Management. At 16 Flint started running a gardening business, Flintstone Gardens, and travels to customers by bus or skateboard. Flint’s approach is to garden as naturally as possible, avoiding chemicals, weeding by hand, and only using heavy equipment where necessary. You can find Flint on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok under the name Flintstone Gardens.