by Frances Stanford

Created on: May 26, 2009   Last Updated: May 30, 2009

Whether it spills, splashes or sprays, the sound of falling water is magic to your ears as you sit in your garden or on your deck. The Chinese and the Japanese perfected the balance of three basic elements for a garden - water, stone and plants. In ancient Rome, fountains were the norm in courtyards and in Victorian England palatial fountains served as homes for goldfish.

Water in motion is always dramatic and with a flowing fountain you can have that drama in your garden. It is also a practical solution for finding a way to keeping cool on a hot summer's day because it provides the cooling spray that you need if you sit close to it. Adding features such as garden sculptures will also add an ambiance of peace and tranquility to the setting.

There are different types of water fountains you can choose for your garden, which will be discussed in this article:

spill fountains spray fountains wall fountains container fountains

Each one has different features and requires different modes of installation and presentation.

SPILL FOUNTAINS

For a spill fountain you do not need much more than a spout and a watertight container. You do need tio install a small submersible pump in the bottom of the container, which will send the water back up to the spout through the connected tubing. You can even forego the spout and simply have the water overflowing from one container to another in a continuous flow.

A fountain statue is a more formal way of having a spill fountain. These are readily available at your local gardening center or at online stores. They are self-contained and all you have to do is install the pump and a connection to a water supply. If you have a small pool on your property, you can easily install such a fountain in the center of the pool.

If you decide to let the water flow from one container to another, you will have a mini-waterfall. Spill pans for such a use are available in two and three levels of plastic containers or you can make your own, such as using a series of different size copper pans.

SPRAY FOUNTAINS

A spray fountain has a head that shoots the water upward in different types of patterns. You can, for example, have the water shooting upwards in a massive column or have a delicate lacy spray. There are different shapes of spray heads, such as bells, mushrooms or domes. You can also choose to heads that cascade, swivel or produce multicoloured patterns as the water sprays through the air and into the basin or pool.

With a spray fountain

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