Project: Babbling Pebble Pool - white noise to detract from neighbour’s trampoline

We live on a new development in the former grounds of an old Victorian mansion in Leicestershire in England – the Grade II listed mansion is still standing, but has sold-off some of the site (it costs a fortune to keep some of England’s old buildings fit enough to live in!)

The atmosphere is lovely. Full of ancient trees, yet with new, modern homes now tucked among them. Birdsong and horse hooves are often heard, but also the sound of an occasional church bell in the distance, a train if the wind is in the right (or wrong) direction, and the odd passing car or bus.

Last month a family moved in next door - adding to that harmonious soundtrack with a trampoline!

Not an entirely negative thing – as it also comes with laughter of happy children, which is a joy but when @Totallysacha and I are enjoying a G&T in the garden we don’t necessarily want to be share that bliss with the squeak of a trampoline. No sirry.

So as the last thing we want to do is ruin their fun, we figured some babbling water might help cover the sound – providing some ‘white noise’ effectively. I didn’t want an off-the-shelf feature pool that may not go with my garden (or my taste) and cost a fortune… I want(ed) something organic, discrete and innocuous in its taste – that no-one could hate!

So I gathered together some bits. All-in-all costing under £40

1. Cheap plastic plant pot around 90l capacity – no holes (obviously!)
2. Two types of mesh – one strong with wide gaps, and one weaker with smaller holes. (And something to cut them with)
3. Some garden wire to tie them together
4. A spirit level
5. A water pump – we opted for a plug-in one rather than solar
6. Pebbles and cobbles. We used Scottish Pebbles to match our existing gravel for that area of the garden
7. Not in the pic, but also a brick or stone! (Only remembered later - after the pic)

I wanted this just off our newly laid patio, tucked in an area where I’ve recently planted some bare-root buxus (Box) hedging which in a few years will form - I hope - a nice informal yet formal parterre.

First off, I scraped away the existing gravel and dug a hole for the reservoir (our plant pot). I needed it deep enough so the mesh – once on top – would sit below the gravel.

Sacha measured the mesh and cut both to just a little wider than the top of the pot.

Once the hole was about right, I made sure the pot was level in it by putting the spirit level on each corner. Being lop-sided/unlevel wouldn’t be a major disaster, it would just mean water would seep out at the lowest point, reducing the effective literage of the reservoir. So as I want it to be the maximum it could be, 90l in our case, keeping it level is best.

I sat the pump on a brick. This is so that any sediment that will inevitably build up at the bottom of the reservoir won’t clog the pump. It’ll obviously need cleaning out from time to time, but not as often if the pump is above that sediment.

I had to sit the pump off centre slightly, so it wouldn’t snag a strong cross-bar of the mesh, and then I cut a hole in one of the ‘almost’ central parts of the mesh for the pump to project through.

We filled the reservoir with water, and tested the pump. All was good, so on with the mesh, and on with the smallest of our stones – the existing gravel I’d scraped away earlier.

Then added the pebbles… followed by the cobbles around the pump itself. Yes it is sticking out, but you’ll want it that way at this stage, so once the stones are settled you can push the telescopic fountain head down a bit to ‘disappear’.

As we did next…. pausing for extreme-close-up inspection by Cobie!

I imagine, knowing me, I’ll be rearranging the stones until they look ‘natural’, but for now this was good enough… I’ve got a Cercis Siliquastrum (Judas Tree) that’s going in behind it once it’s grown up a bit. I love already how the river battered pebbles echo the rounded leaves of the Cercis. YAY

And the sound in action...

Just what we’re after. It’s already working a treat! Now, that G&T …..

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Muirgheas x
Secret Gardener