Ultra Outdoors
Some people use their backyard for entertaining summer activities. Other people prefer their backyard to be a place for calm and tranquility. If you’re part of the latter and want to turn your backyard into a luxurious paradise that brings you peace, adding a koi pond will do the trick.
Koi fish are colorful and decorative, and a koi fish pond is a soothing addition to your home. Many homeowners find peace in watching their koi fish and caring for the pond.
Looking for koi pond ideas to make this stunning addition to your home? Keep reading to discover all the possibilities you can achieve with a koi fish pond.
What Is a Koi Pond?
First things first: what exactly is a koi pond?
A koi pond is a pond explicitly designed to hold koi fish. These ponds are usually part of a garden, making them popular for backyards.
Koi ponds are popular in Japan and are a staple in Japanese gardens. However, these types of backyard ponds have started growing in popularity worldwide, especially in North America. Many koi enthusiasts find peace in caring for a koi pond, and garden enthusiasts enjoy adding another element to their peaceful garden.
Since the primary purpose of a backyard koi pond is to raise and keep koi, it’s essential to know what koi fish are and determine whether you’re interested in keeping such fish.
What Are Koi Fish?
Koi fish are colorful carp that people keep in ponds as decorative pets. Domestic koi can get as large as 12 inches; jumbo koi as large as 36 inches.
In Japanese culture, these beautiful fish represent perseverance amidst adversity, courage, and luck, mainly because they can swim against the current and are quite resilient.
Koi fish come in a variety of grades, ranging from $8 to over $600 for a single fish. Koi fish also need to be taken care of while in a koi pond, including managing filtration systems and ensuring that you feed your fish the right amount.
A koi pond and koi fish can be expensive, meaning that not everyone can afford to add one to their backyard. What’s more, creating a koi pond in your yard takes a lot of work, so the task is best left to professionals, which can also be pricey.
That said, if you want this majestic aqua feature in your backyard and are willing to commit to it, you won’t regret it. It may become your favorite area of your home.
Now that you know what both a koi pond and koi fish are, it’s time to check out some ideas to start making your own.
6 Koi Pond Ideas
While a simple koi pond is already a beautiful addition to your backyard, there are ways in which you can make this water feature more unique and tailor it to your desired backyard aesthetic.
There are various koi pond ideas to choose from to turn your koi pond into the oasis of your dreams.
For inspiration, here are six koi pond ideas for your backyard paradise.
1. Build a Japanese garden around your koi pond
One of the most popular things to do with a koi pond is to surround it with a garden.
Many times, people choose to add a koi pond to their garden. However, if a koi pond is the first addition to your backyard, then you can design a garden around your koi pond.
If you want to keep the theme of tranquility, designing a Japanese garden is a great way to complete your koi pond. The three essential elements of a Japanese garden are:
- Stone: forms the structure of the landscape
- Water: represents a life-giving force
- Plants: provide the color for the garden and change throughout the seasons
With a koi pond, you already have the water element, so all that’s left is to add the stones and plants.
There are a variety of aquatic plants that you may consider adding to your koi pond, with the most popular being lily pads. Your koi fish will love the lily pads, and they can also be great for other animals, such as turtles.
Pro tip: It’s best to work with pond plants that thrive in your area rather than Japanese water plants that may not survive.
2. Add decorative stones
Adding decorative stones is another excellent element that compliments a koi pond to complete a Japanese garden.
If you have a large enough koi pond, consider adding stepping stones. Stepping stones are a great way to add a natural-looking walkway to your koi pond and allow you to get a closer view of your koi pond.
Adding other decorative rocks to your koi pond can also give it a more natural look. Rocks are also good for the koi and add complexity to your pond landscape.
3. Add a waterfall
While a koi pond already provides you with the water element of a Japanese garden, you can bring it to the next level with a waterfall.
A small waterfall makes any backyard feel like an oasis and compliments a koi pond very well. A waterfall can also increase the amount of oxygen in the pond and provide fish with cooler water. Not to mention, you’ll enjoy the natural trickling of the water feature as you sit outside.
4. Build a bridge over your koi pond
If you want to add additional structures to your backyard to create complexity, building a bridge over your koi pond is a great way to do that.
A bridge can also be a functional addition to your koi pond, especially if it separates areas of your backyard. An arched bamboo bridge over your koi pond will provide picturesque moments in your backyard and allow you to get closer to the fish.
Building a bridge may take a lot of work, but it is worth it.
5. Create a sitting area around your koi pond
A koi pond is beautiful to gaze at, but you, of course, need somewhere to gaze at it from.
If you don’t already have a sitting area near your koi pond, adding to your backyard should be a priority. A koi pond sitting area is crucial for you to take in the calming energy that a koi pond provides. It serves as a great place to take your morning coffee or as a simple escape from the day’s chaos in the afternoon.
Your seating area can be as simple as a small patio set for you to sit with a friend or loved one and enjoy your koi pond.
6. Decorate your koi pond with sculptures
Adding interesting garden sculptures to your koi pond is last on our list of koi pond ideas.
Water features and sculptures go hand in hand. You can choose from various sculptures for your koi pond to provide additional depth to your backyard.
There are a variety of unique garden sculptures that you can choose from which may align with your backyard vision. You can even get koi fish sculptures!
Koi Pond Ideas FAQs
What else can I put in a koi pond?
Koi aren’t the only fish that can swim in a koi pond.
Koi fish get along with various fish that make great companions in an outdoor koi pond. For many pond enthusiasts, a koi pond rich in biodiversity is the ultimate goal. Other fish to add to your koi pond include:
- Goldfish
- Grass carp
- Redear fish
- Suckermouth catfish
- Chinese high-fin banded shark
Should a koi pond be in the sun or shade?
A koi pond does better in a shaded area than in full sun. A shaded area will slow the algae growth and prevent water from getting too hot in the summer.
That said, a koi pond can still thrive in sunlight, so don’t let that stop you from adding one to your backyard.
How deep should a koi pond be?
A koi pond should be at least three feet deep, with no pond area being shallower than two feet.
Any area under two feet makes your koi fish vulnerable to predators, such as birds or raccoons. Even if you don’t think there are any predators in your neighborhood, it’s best to ensure your koi pond is deep enough to protect your fish, just in case.
The Takeaway: Koi Ponds Make a Backyard Unique
To conclude, if peace and tranquility in your outdoor space are what you’re after, you should consider adding a koi pond to your backyard.
Hopefully, you have found a variety of koi pond design ideas to inspire you to start making this beautiful addition to your backyard.
