The koi pond in the old San Jose City Hall was one of the most excellent landscape water features that I can remember. Part of it was inside the atrium like lobby, and part of it was outside the front doors. The big, colorful koi could come and go in and out through holes under the front windows. The pond was there as long as I can remember, but was removed I think in the early 1980’s.

The koi were descendants of those in the larger koi pond in the Japanese Friendship Garden of Kelley Park. Another herd of happy koi lived in a pond in the picturesque Hakone Garden in Saratoga. As koi became more available, koi ponds became more popular in other public gardens.

Fountains have also been appealing and increasingly popular features in public landscapes. I think that those in the San Jose Municipal Rose Garden, the Rosicrucian Museums and Saint James Park are the most classic. The modern fountains at the McEnery Convention Center and the Center For The Performing Arts have also become classic. People really enjoy the sight and sound of water in the landscape.

For those of who do not mind the maintenance, ponds, fountains and even simple birdbaths can be appealing features in our home gardens as well. They can be all sorts of styles, shapes and sizes, and can add various acoustic and visual elements to the environment. Even the more subdued water features have particular ways of adding color, motion and sound.

Some water features accomplish this indirectly, buy attracting wildlife, or by providing a home for not so wild life. Birdbaths, even the simplest that lack circulating water, invite the delicate sounds, color and activity of the birds who enjoy them. Koi ponds, or even small ponds with goldfish, are home to quiet, but even more colorful fish.

Ranging from quiet and subdued to dramatic, circulating water can provide motion and sound as well. Small volumes of water flowing gently over rocks or coarsely textured sculpture are more than adequate for most home gardens, and can be added to fishponds. Small bubblers can even be added to larger birdbaths. Wall fountains or small fountains built into large urns are ideal for cozy garden spaces, atriums and ‘outdoor rooms’. Large tiered fountains that would be a bit overwhelming and noisy in relaxing garden areas are better near large patios that are used for entertaining.

In the garden at my former home, I built a very simple fountain in a wine barrel to obscure the sound of the nearby freeway. The barrel smelled horrible for a while, but eventually leached clean. Its small (DC) bilge pump that I found in a marine supply store was powered directly by two small solar panels (RV battery chargers) that I got from an automotive supply store, so the fountain operated only during the day. The hose from the pump came up and out the mouth of a sun shaped sculpture hung less than a foot above the water. Ten ‘feeder’ goldfish that I got for a dollar at the neighborhood pet supply store were happy to keep mosquitoes from breeding.