One Year at the Pond
Almost exactly one year ago, a group of volunteers at the Hampstead Heath Energy Garden had the wonderful idea to turn a disused raised bed overrun with forgotten potatoes into a pond and wetland habitat. We hoped our legacy frog statue – named Prince – would provide some luck and an open invitation to the amphibians we wanted to see.
At first, it didn’t look like much. However, a 55L pond shell bought online, combined with multiple Spring showers, rubble we found in the garden, and various pond plants, created a home that is now teeming with life.
Left Image: Pond shell dug into the raised bed filled with rainwater and garden rubble
Right Image: Pond plants being placed by two people
Last Year
In the early days, we solely had mosquito larvae. We occasionally pond dipped to assess our pond health and to see if we could see any other life. We eventually saw snails, hoverflies, and then, the long-awaited frog.
Left Image: Frog spotted in the pond with its head peeking out from the water amidst plants
Right Image: Close-up photo of a frog’s head emerging from under a lily pad
Taking refuge underneath the Common Arrowhead (Saggitaria sagittifolia), and by the Water Forget-me-not (Myosotis scorpioides), we spotted our first frog – also decidedly named Prince by the group.
This small sighting felt enormous. Our little pond, barely a few months old, had become a home.
This Spring
This year we had a keen eye out for the presence of frogspawn, only to find out we now have new neighbours – newts.
Newts – sleek and shimmering - have made their way into the pond, appearing only just beneath the surface. We do miss our frog friends, but we are currently too awestruck and curious of the newts to dwell on our nostalgia.
Left Image: Newt’s body spotted underneath the surface
Right Image: Newt’s head spotted underneath the surface
“Freshwater habitats (like rivers) are under threat in London - obviously we don't have space for a huge lake, but even a tiny pond gives animals a stepping stone to help them on their way as they move between bigger water bodies. We've seen tons of species using our pond including frogs, newts, hoverflies and pond snails. It's so fulfilling to build a new habitat and watch it fill up with life.”
Issy, volunteer at Hampstead Heath Energy Garden
Left Image: Two people using the microscope at the pond’s edge after dipping a petri dish into the water
Right image: Four people looking over at a frog on the ground by the pond
More than a Pond
Over this past year, the pond has become a place of connection - for curious commuters passing through the station, and for us gardeners who pause our weeding to gaze beside it. It’s a place of wonder and provides an essential moment of stillness, requiring you to focus on the water’s edge to see what may lie above, or beneath.
Perhaps we can begin calling it an oasis?
See you at the oasis! - Anna