When creating a water garden you will need to choose from either a soft pond liner or a hard pond liner. If you are using a soft liner, your water garden or fish pond can take any shape you like such as square, round, oblong or just about anything else that you can think of. If you are using a rigid or preformed pond, you will need to purchase your liner already formed into the shape that you want your pond to be in. The best garden pond designs start with the liner and work their way outwards.
When it comes down to it, the shape of the garden pond is not what gives it its charm or character, it is actually the water plants, fish and the plants that surround the outside of the pond. In general, pond designs can be either formal and informal.
Formal pond styles have clean straight lines and geometric shapes and they often have rigid borders made of brick, preformed tiles or even rocks. Formal garden ponds can be used as reflecting pools so they are very calm and reflect the surrounding trees and flowers. You don't normally see this design of water garden in backyards.
Rectangles and squares are thought to be of formal styles and the more they are stretched to being oval, the more informal they look.
Informal garden pond design ideas have curving fluid lines that flow without defined edges into the surrounding gardens and vegetation. These designs have a more natural appearance and function.
Waterfalls are normally added to this type of design, while edging compliments the landscaping, which can be irregular and hilly. Using large rocks and river rocks on the bottom and edges of the pond makes it seem even more natural.
Rectangles are the easiest to install as they are easier to dig a hole for and when you use soft liners, you only have to make a few folds in the corners. Preformed ponds such as kidney shapes are even easier to install. The free formed design, where you define the shape by digging and then lining with a soft pond liner, are more difficult to install yourself. Depending on the shape you choose, you may need to buy almost twice as much liner than you think you will need. If you are installing it yourself, then it might be wise to avoid shapes that produce arms or very irregular design since it could be a nightmare trying to get the liners to fit.
Just remember to plan out your water garden before you start to build it. Make sure you know what shape you want the pond to be, and how much room your favorite rocks and plants will need so that your pond isn't cramped in a corner. Most importantly, plan some extra space for a chair or two so that you can enjoy your pond and all of the hard work you've put into it.
