Our farm pond before and after excavation
I know you are all gripped by this stuff and wait with bated breath for the next installment. Well ok, perhaps not, but I thought it worth providing an update on something I wrote a few weeks ago.
In early December 2014, we contracted a neighbour, Gordon, to bring a small digger in and clear a completely overgrown pond for us. It was tempting to do this myself but I was persuaded by a wise (and a bit killjoyish) wife that although this would be fun, someone with no knowledge of or aptitude for machinery and all those levers and things, would take a good deal longer to do the job than Gordon, who is a bit of an artist with the old lever and bucket. Jane was kind enough not to add that the result, had I taken on the job, might have been somewhat less impressive too.
Gordon did the expected excellent job and we assumed months would pass before we’d see if the thing would fill up. We were wrong. Within a week, it was pretty much full and I reconsidered previous musing on the reasons for it having been damaged by an ditch in the past. I fear it will overflow into the arable field next door and wonder if that may be why it was emptied in the past. The field next door is farmed by previously mentioned digger artist, Gordon, so if the worst happens, we can argue that he was at least involved in the committal of the crime.
We wait with some excitement for spring to see what monsters move in. Jane is warming up the pond dipping nets and I’m imagining the pleased and yes, grateful, local bats, visiting, of a June evening, to eat their fill on gnats and mosquitoes.
Watch this space.