Garden Accoutrement

Yesterday I went to Lowe's to get a new bit of hose for a tiny pump I use in a stock tank that is my pond.  It manages to dribble enough water up onto a side rock to attract insects for a drink, (and aerate the water).  The pump is smaller than a tangerine but is going strong.

Once at the store I wandered by the pond supply section on the way to the potting soil I needed for my cherry tomatoes.  Since pumps are down a dead end aisle in the opposite corner of the garden center from the soil it was a "guided wander" for sure...but I really had intended to only buy the replacement tubing for the old pump!  Anyway, I chose the smallest of the beefy pond pumps; rated to lift water about 7 feet, the size of a coffee mug on its side, a nice long power cord.

When I got home I took an old piece of bamboo that is big enough to hide the water tubing, smashed out the internal webbing, and threaded the tube down it.  I hooked it up to the pump, lowered the pump in among the surprised pollywogs and plugged it in.  Water fountained from the end of the bamboo in several directions, following a crack.  Great!   Then the mosquitoes decided the sun had gone down then  so today I get to play with the aesthetics of the thing. (I'll take some pictures today.)

All this news is to explain why I don't have a horticultural blog offering!  I've been lured outside.

I did get some cool pics off ebay yesterday though...here is one from someone else who once loved their garden pond.