PRAIRIE
PONDSCAPE
PROJECT
DESIGNS
Dutch Gardening meets Kansas Prairie
The acclaimed art form of Dutch gardening has been passed down through the family of Gerard Wellemeyer. Dutch horticulturists, while renowned for tulips, are also famously adept with green technology. Prairie Pondscapes incorporate the latest green tech processes and materials.
Butterfly Basin
Soil Type: Loam, Rocky or Chalky Soil
Sun exposure: Full Sun
Features: Extreme silt & flood tolerance
Promient Plant: Golden Coreopsis (June/July)
Butterfly Basin belongs to sunny and rocky pond embankments- even riprap!
Butterfly Basin is a maintenance-free meadow design. Give your non-mowed detention basins a clean appearance! Featuring fields of low-grow spike rush with an annual show of golden coreopsis, mid-size tufts of tussock sedges are grouped symmetrically for compelling accent.
Completing this theme is a distinct destination: a Kansas University Monarch Waystation (Rock Chalk!)- a garden plot of perennial flowers plus milkweeds.
Hummingbird Haze
Soil Type: Heavy Clay or Loam
Sun exposure: Sun to Part Sun
Features: Erosion resistant and flood tolerant
Prominent Plant: Purple Pickerel (Summer)
Hummingbird Haze is a buffer zone “buffet” of red, pink, and purple flowers: hummingbirds especially love red, nectar-rich flowers.
Hummingbird Haze has a story- we collected seed from remnant prairie grasses and cultivated them to restore the pond!
And did you know that hummingbirds nest in cedar and evergreen trees? So if that’s already a feature in your neighborhood, consider this design for the joy of your gardening neighbors.
New stories are written with each Pondscape Project
While planning Hummingbird Haze, we stumbled upon helpful seeds to collect and grow for the Spring. So whether it’s a frisbee golf course overrun by muskrats, or a swan sanctuary, we design around existing beauty, preserving desirable nature elements. Read our example here.
Some Pondscapes are swift solutions to worsening problems
More than just erosion control! We provide alternative solutions for common pond issues including pond leaks, sediment runoff and polluted water. For example: a neighborhood can completely restore their property values by transforming a silty, muddy retention basin at merely 5-10% of the cost & time of dredging.
Prairie Fen
Soil Type: Heavy Clay, Rocky and Silty Soil
Sun exposure: Full Sun
Features: High flood tolerance
Prominent Plant: Kobald Gayfeather (Summer)
Prairie Fen is a tribute to the Flint Hills; it belongs to silted-in ponds or mudflat basins. Too wet to mow? Prairie Fen is low-maintenance, featuring low-growing basins of spike rush with black-eyed Susan interspersed, plus formal stands of switchgrass and playful prairie dropseed grass.
A versatile design- flowers are planted in geometric plots next to the grasses. This may be cardinal plant, pickerel, Riddell’s goldenrod or purple coneflower.
Songbird Splash
Soil Type: Sand or Loam
Sun exposure: Full Sun
Features: Extreme Erosion Control
Prominent Plant: Obedient Flower (August, not pictured)
Songbird Splash is a painterly pallet of pink, purple, and blue flowers with soft green grass borders-helpful for deterring geese.
This design is dominant in perennials, making it ideal for geotextile projects: the selection of grasses & flowers creates a fibrous/lattice root structure. Flood-tolerant and erosion resistant, Songbird Splash will filter your water while the seed-bearing landscape provides year-round sanctuary for finches, wrens and blackbirds.
Prairie Pondscapes compliment typical pond amenities such as crushed rock
Plant groupings are closely spaced in geometric patterns, with neighboring blocks of space reserved just for seed plants. Geotextiles, riprap, seawalls or existing retaining walls may also be incorporated into the design movement.
Creating Sustainable Communities for a Better Tomorrow
Here’s what traditional yards and landscapes put into ponds: grass clippings, mulch, fertilizer, pesticides and erosion. Prairie Pondscapes keep out all of those things, plus litter and wind-blown leaves… while looking good, too!
Monarch Meadow
Soil Type: Clay or Rocky Soil
Sun exposure: Full Sun
Features: Drought resistance & Erosion Control
Prominent Plant: Upland Switchgrass
Open Spaces are popular! Plan a path through Monarch Meadow and your neighborhood will compare to the likes of Denver and Minneapolis. Home on the range!
Monarch Meadow is the style of the famous Konza Prairie. For dry or wet tracts of land. This design recreates our native plains in all its glory- perfect for easements, slopes, detention basins, and undeveloped reserves- where low maintenance is helpful.
Adding to your story, your Monarch Meadow will receive a Kansas University Monarch Waystation registration.
Riparian Rill
Soil Type: Dry to wet Sand or Loam
Sun exposure: Sun and Shade
Features: Resistance to Beaver and Muskrat behavior
Prominent Plant: Blanketflower (May-July, not pictured)
Our most rugged & resilient design. Riparian Rill is modeled by the WATER Center creek located at Herman Hill Park. Boasting a nature trail and a frisbee golf course, this rushing crick flows through naturalized sand dunes and grassy glades. With masses of hummingbird mint, clumps of Indian Grass and swaths of sand muhly grass, this 4-season feature is home to Kansas wildlife. Yet its flexible design discourages muskrats. This stream habitat is maintained by Living Waters Aquatic Management.
Prairie Pondscapes tolerate high traffic and recreation in extreme circumstances
We love the backyard life. Our designs eagerly accommodate walking paths, families and fishermen. Prairie Pondscapes even hold-up to disc golfers, firefly-chasers, bird watchers and more!
How to Acquire
To acquire our Prairie Pondscapes services, simply get in touch with us via phone or email. We will schedule a site visit to assess your pond area and discuss the best design options based on your preferences and environmental considerations.