Meadfields pond excavation

This Surrey project was carried out under sub-contract, with the final planting being carried out by the main contractor. The project was conceived by a well respected landscape designer.

Meadfields was a very poor access site, being both at the back of the property through a narrow path, but more importantly down some 40 feet below the main house in the valley floor. A special access was made through which all plant and materials were taken which demanded careful planning and sequencing of works. Excavator mats were used to create a temporary roadway to protect lawns and planting.

The site consisted of one natural spring fed bog and a neglected butyl lined pond, leaving the surrounding area largely waterlogged and featureless. The main watercourse was diverted around the site and a system of drains installed and ditches culverted to de-water the generally wet site.

The pond and bog were cleaned out and excavated, using the spoil to re-profile an adjacent part of the site. A third pond was excavated and all three linked to provide an on stream flow using the watercourse present at the top of the site. All three ponds were edged and lined with butyl and subsequently overlaid with topsoil from site. This provided planting margins and concealed the liner to give the impression of a natural pond. Paths and rockwork were sympathetically installed with a small oak bridge traversing the flow or water between ponds.

With some detailing and planting completed by the main contractor the client now has a wonderful outlook from the main house into their newly reclaimed hidden pond garden which will only mature and improve over time.

Excavation of existing ponds

Lined with butyl

The completed pond

Rockwork

Detailed planting