Water Garden Plants for Canada

Beryl Hamilton is a freelance writer in Thunder Bay who specializes in
home gardening.

As water gardening continues to become more and more popular across
Canada, this excellent book by best-selling author Alison Beck should
encourage many curious gardeners to take the plunge. Several advances
have been made in pond technology in the past few years, which have
eliminated one of the drawbacks associated with water gardens in the
past—maintenance nightmares. Water gardening can now be an enjoyable,
environmentally friendly, and not especially time-intensive hobby. Beck
offers advice on plant selection, care of plants, and planting locations
(including size, hardiness, and preferred growing conditions), and
outlines the steps necessary for establishing a water garden, including
its installation, maintenance, and relationship to the wider ecosystem.
In addition, the author includes a note about the West Nile virus to
address gardener’s fear that water gardens increase the mosquito
population. She points out that mosquitoes prefer to breed in still
water, and that keeping a healthy circulation system in your water
garden and some healthy fish not only deters mosquitoes from laying eggs
but also reduces their population.

There are hundreds of plants described in this book, with full-colour
photographs. Beck suggests which ones are best suited for water gardens
in different parts of Canada, and she discusses potential pests and
problems. This guidebook is an excellent starting point for those
wanting to build and maintain a water garden in any part of Canada.