hi all

love this forum. i have been a lurker for a little while but first time posting.

i had to fire my contractor. work started beginning of June. the ~1/2 acre pond is still not finished. maybe about 70% done.
the contractor i'm talking to now won't be able to start until late spring/early summer next year.

i have about 100 pounds of buckwheat seed i had planned to plant around the pond once completed. since that's not gonna happen now for a while and i have a "mountain" of soil waiting to be used then, should i go ahead and sow said "mountain" with the buckwheat seeds? i'm in middle/east tennessee and we get 50+ inches of rain a year. a lot of it during winter. i don't want any of that soil mountain eroding into the unfinished pond.

i'm also wondering if i should sow some wheat or annual rye seeds on the pond banks/sides for the same reason.

what do you think?

thanks a million

maureen

It cannot hurt to establish some plants for erosion control. I went through 4 contractors on my 2nd pond. Two to get the hole dug and two more to fix major defects. I built my 3rd and 4th pond mostly on my own. I hate running the machines but feel that I have little choice. Think that I am now done building ponds, but have a couple wetland projects that I hope to tackle. Good luck getting your pond finished!

It can't hurt.

If these soils are blank of nutrients the % of the seed that get established will be very low.

We completed pond a year ago. The main dam did well with the covering of the ponds topsoil.

We added a "kick out" dam to funnel water into the pond from a secondary drainage. That dam was build from soil about 4 feet subsurface. It is really poor growing quality due to low nutrient content. Some of the winter wheat established but didnt take. Spring fescue didnt take. Summer bermuda didnt take. There are a few weeds that popped up here and there. I'm going back with another dose of winter wheat and some rye seed to see if something will take hold.

It would be a good idea to sow some seeds on that fresh dirt to avoid as much erosion as possible, here in MO I do a lot of annual or perennial Rye grass, and also wheat on exposed soil, its really cheap and it doesnt have to be certified seed wheat, I buy regular feed wheat, comes up fast and holds soils well. remember, as others said, your soils from a deep source like that may not have much nutrients at all, to counteract that you will need to fertilize it well with a good triple 13 fertilizer, which may be the only source of nutrients for the seed to grow on.
I finished my pond in March, it had no topsoil cover, just some rocky, chirty, clay from way down deep. On the back side and top of the dam, I immediately seeded it with a wheat and rye grass mixture and fertilized it really well and it took off like crazy, I added clover the next winter and havent touched it since other then to add fertilizer, even with a huge amount of rain in the first several months I have had almost no erosion problems and a clover stand on the back of the dam so thick that it choked out my crown vetch that I wanted to take over for the long term when the clover dies out. Good luck!

Maureen, if you can give a little bit more information, then we can give better answers.

Your "mountain of soil" can be broken down into three (or more) classes. Did the contractor stockpile topsoil? (To cover up your poor subsoils after the pond was constructed.) If that is the case, OR if the entire mountain is fertile top soil, then the good seeding advice you have received above should be a big help.

Is the mountain made of clay that was stockpiled for the dam? If so, then it will be difficult to get plants established.

Finally, is the mountain made of "spoils" or excavated material that will be moved elsewhere? If that material is going to be moved again, you could have another contractor do that work even though they are not a pond contractor.

In addition to planting cover to slow your erosion, you can also do some minor mechanical work that could be a big help. Any way that you can slow the water flow from the dirt pile to the future pond will reduce erosion. A tiny 6" dam below the pile (that follows the elevation contour) might be worth the effort.

Good luck on your new pond for next year!

I don't know how big this mountain is but maybe use some bales of straw to make a containment wall and stake them down so they don't move?

Gosh, you guys, thanks so much for all the replies!

Let me try to be a bit more specific about things.

According to the contractor, the "mountain" is all top soil. For dressing up, and leveling the area around the raised banks at the end.

The pond is mostly a dug pond. The banks are raised. When finished, I think they will go from 1ft to 3 ft above grade. But right now, only half the perimeter (the half opposite the mountain) is raised. Meaning, even when the hole I have right now fills up with water, the higher banks (inside the pond) will be left exposed to erosion.

My instinct was to scatter seed everywhere but I was worried I would somehow make the new contractor's job harder come next year. So I don't have to worry about that? I can scatter seeds everywhere even on the exposed pond basin?

I'm also going to explore the straw bale barricade and the tiny 6" dam idea.

I've had this awful knot in my stomach thinking about the year ahead with an unfinished pond to greet me every time I come home... But I'm feeling a lot better after reading your messages.

Thanks again

Maureen

All top soil, good! That is the easiest to work with.

Bob's hay bale idea is definitely better than my 6" dam! The hay bales will "leak" a little water, but you just need to slow the water flow to prevent erosion. You should even be able to get some cheap "small squares" this time of year. Stuff like wheat straw rather than expensive alfalfa or grass.

I have not covered a slope with seeds right after excavation, but lots of people on Pond Boss have had good success just spreading rye. It comes up quick, and should NOT be thick next spring when you get equipment back on site.

I don't see any need for you to put any seed into the bottom of the pond. However, seed is cheap, so it might be worth it for you to sow some of the slopes within the pond to keep them close to their current grades.

Finally, there is no substitute for YOUR eyeballs on the project. Go out to your place while it is raining (or immediately after) and observe where the erosion is occurring. Water has an amazing capacity to gather itself. If you see places where deep cuts are being eroded into your slopes, then you need to focus your attention on the worst offenders. They will draw more water and flow faster and the problems will only get worse in those spots.

Good luck!

P.S. Don't worry so much that the knot in your stomach persists. A little dirt washing back into the pond at this stage is not a big deal! You already have arrangements for equipment to be on site anyway next spring.

It is AFTER your pond is completed that erosion control is very important. Consider this fall a practice run, so you will be very good at it next spring when your pond is finished!

Maureen,

My previous advice was based on me envisioning a small top soil pile and a narrow area of water run-off.

If it is a large area, then I believe the best method is to install a silt fence. (You will see these installed in the ditches when you drive by road construction projects this summer.)

Silt fences should be available at Tractor Supply or the big box hardware stores in your area.

Here is a link to a video for a fence installed by hand.
(He is an Aussie, so 200 mm = 8 inches.)

Installing a Silt Fence

The Aussie expression, "No worries, mate!", should hopefully apply to your situation.