Water, earth, air, sun—these are the elements necessary for a truly harmonious gardenscape. Martin Mosko, the Zen monk who is designing the Garden of Infinite Compassion at the Sawtooth Botanical Garden in honor of the Dalai Lama's visit here in September, is a true believer of this philosophy.
"No garden can be without expression of the water element, since life cannot exist without water," Mosko said. "The water, itself, such as a pond, does not have to actually be in the space. It can be the implication of water. The thought or energy of that element has to be present."
The Chinese word for landscape, shanshui, literally means mountains and water. In Taoist terms, the yang, the masculine aspect, is represented in a garden by rock formations that balances the yin, or feminine quality, of water.
It's no accident that fountains are often in public parks. Water provides a calm atmosphere, a tropical haven or a natural focal point.
The Garden of Infinite Compassion being created will have a circulated water pond that will look like an extension of the adjacent existing stream.
Proponents of the water features, Kevin and Frannie Lenane, owners of Alpine Aquatics in Hailey, have created a magical piece of paradise at their new space in the business area next to the airport.
"We're all about plants," Lenane said recently. He has a master's degree in Environment Aquaculture and has been working in the field for 20 years.
"The little ecosystems you can create with water features have natural balance incorporating water plants that help produce nutrients, and air," Lenane said.
Some of the plants he uses in clients' gardens include wild rice, lungwort, iris, speedwell, primrose, marsh marigold, American water plantain, oxygen grasses, papyrus and, of course, water lilies, carnivorous pitcher plants and Venus fly traps.
These plants have the added benefit of providing shade in ponds for wildlife, fish, turtles and frogs. The various roles of these plants lend themselves to a healthy habitat by eating mosquitoes and other flies and clarifying the pond of scum and bacteria. As an added incentive to pursue such features, the Idaho Fish and Wildlife Foundation awards certificates for creating Backward Habitats to residential gardeners.
Because high alpine conditions don't encourage water features, many people misunderstand the benefits of these gardens as well as how to create them properly. The water must be recirculated to keep from being stagnant or wastewater.
A pond with recirculated water uses a "fraction as much water" as a bluegrass lawn, Mosko said. "Bluegrass is the real culprit (in water waste). Recirculated water cools the climate, creates a reservoir that can be used as fire mitigation and provides the magic of the garden."
The Lenanes who've been in business in the valley for eight years agree.
"The biggest mistake people make is making a pond that is too small for a space and too far from the house," Lenane said. "You need to bring it into your living space. You spend so much more time there if it's closer."
Their retail shop in Hailey carries everything one needs for water gardens, including fish food, pumps and prefabricated pond forms. In their magic garden Koi swim lazily by a Zen garden, water burbles out of small fountains and down a rock fall, and frogs hide beneath lily pads. The fish are for sale and are kept in three huge open tanks on the premises.
The Lenane's are hosting a "Build a Pond Day" on Saturday, Aug. 20, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at a home at 421 Eureka Street in Hailey. On Monday nights they will be hosting event nights such as wine tasting and sketching at Alpine Aquatics, 1811 Lear Lane, west of airport.
For more information and to register for the "Build a Pond Day," call 788-1803.
Frannie Lenane scopes out a part of her water garden in Hailey, while, in the background, her husband Kevin searches for an wily frog. Express photos by Dana DuGan
