frogs

[mullein3]

i have moved my pond this week and when i was moving the wood surrounding the old pond i found lots of frogs small and large..where i have moved it all to is only a few feet away so they will probably have got back under the wood again..do they eat anything? if so is their anything i could buy to feed them with??i used to be scared of frogs but i have got used to them since being here as even before i had the pond their were frogs..my last retriever used to carry them around the garden in the soft part of his mouth without hurting them..thanks for any help...p.s...their are no fish in my pond its mainly for the birds to bath in..

[andyjevs]

Frogs and toads generally eat bugs.....worms, woodlice, beetles, spiders etc etc....and of course, lots of slugs !!!

Frogs are now gathering around their favourite spawning sites. They will start to get into the water and select mates in a few weeks....and then, your pond will resemble a roman orgy !!!!
Once the spawn is laid, the frogs will leave the pond but never be far from it....toads are less "aquatic" and can move many miles away from water whereas frogs prefer to remain near water.

By having no fish in the pond, you can be assured of a pretty high survival rate from the tadpoles. Put some water plants in, maybe a small lilly and you will attract all sorts of wildlife including some pretty wicked damsel and dragon flies.
Add some plants around the pond such as Verbena bonariensis or petunia and you might get some hummingbird hawk moths come to visit. Also sow a packet of night scented stock where you want it to flower....the scent is awesome.

Your frogs should be well happy and hopefully you'll get a lot of ickle ones...which will return to your pond to spawn in about 3 years time.
Carry on putting the logs round, they're invaluable for shelter and also provide homes for slugs and other bugs....frog food.

Good luck, it's damn rewarding

[mullein3]

andy if you see this post..you know the plants you can get for the pond is their some that just float on top of the water without me having to go to the trouble of planting those aquatic baskets up...i also would like to know the name of a plant so i can get one from the garden centre..nothing that needs planting though..i have put grasses ..ox eye daisys..wild chamomile and my gunnera round the pond this morning i havnt finished yet as i still have lots of herbs and wild flowers to plant..its looking good allready..and i have put climbing roses up elderberry sticks on the corners ..its wicked!! mr m is a kind soul and it was him wondering if he could buy the frogs some food!!!..i also made a bridge accross the pond with a log today..so the birds have a perch..thanks for your help..

[andyjevs]

Loads of plants available. Water plants such as ceratophyllum (water crowfoot) which doesn't have any roots or the floating frogbit will be fine.

Around the pond, i'd be looking at marsh marigold (caltha pulustris), iris pseudochorus, houtinnya, lobelia cardinalis, astilbe, hosta and bog arum (zantedeschia)....plus some of the carex species of grass (C. pendula if you have lots of room !!!!). Creeping Jenny (lysemachia) and bugle (ajuga) are also good around the edges of damp ponds

Any of the ericacious species of shrub such as pieris, Japanese maple, Azalea etc should be fine in damp soil providing it's acid.

If you need any more info....let me know

Andy

[mullein3]

thanks andy...i have some meadowsweet that i am going to move by the pond and some purple loosestrife..i am not sure about hostas we get lots of slugs..they will be pecked to death..i will get some pond plants shortly..i have been going out and doing a bit each day..as its cold and its starting to take shape its fairly large its 4x4 and its in the centre of my old veg patch so i have lots of space to fill..so i am working from the pond out with the planting..i have loads of fox gloves so i have scattered them around,,i have some stock seeds in my seed box but because i moved the pond and i measured the new one to big oopppps...i had to start again so by this time the soil was flooded and its clay soil and its like a bog and it rained yesterday and will rain today..so i shall have to resume the work on it monday..any way its starting to look good..i am well pleased with it..thanks for your help...

[WendyS]

Good luck with your new pond Mullein. The frogs are probably still in late hibernation but I'm sure they'll migrate back to the woodpile again until they're ready to come out and spawn. You doing pond work has reminded me dig out my wellies and waterproof gloves and clean my small pond out ready for their arrival. Frogs normally migrate back to the same pond every year to breed and I'm sure if you grow lots of hostas they'll be delighted to eat the slugs for you. Incidentally, if you get lots of tadpoles they will feed on the green algae in the pond initially, but if you're worried that there might not be enough food for them all, lettuce leaves (especially the round leaved varieties) boiled for five minutes will supplement their diet.

[mullein3]

wendy..thanks for your reply..i havnt got any algea as i moved my pond and filled it up clean..i disturbed the frogs when i moved it and i hope they are back under the logs..i still have a lot to do outside on it but its cold and damp..i also put a new liner in and the old one underneath it for extra support...to be honest with you i dont like hostas i only grow wild flowers and herbs with the exception of my gunnera and a few shrubs and grasses..i am into natural things..i have put a bit of ivy round the logs and thats it..and i am edging with grasses and wild flowers..i have some herbs that i can put round also i am working outwards...its great fun...

[footshot]

frogs tend to feed on insects, slugs and small worms , i spose you could buy a bag of mealworms [they will be in yur superstore for wildbird food or pets@ home etc] but they dont much this time of the year apart hide in sheltered little nooks and crannies
[ i have one under my front door step lol ] Enjoy