The most exciting landscapes around the world tend to create immersive experiences involving the stimulation of the senses. A water feature constructed as part of or near a patio can enhance the entire outdoor living space. For adding drama to a landscape, there are a few main water features to consider: the pond, the reflecting pool, the water fountain, and the waterfall. As your next projects unfold this spring, you could keep in mind these four water feature options for enhancing a State College, PA, patio.

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Naturalistic Pond

The connection to the natural world is probably one of the biggest reasons for constructing a water feature in a landscape. A naturalistic pond next to a patio will do multiple wonderful things for a landscape including regulating air temperature, providing a source of water for birds and animals, reflecting the wonderful images of the home and landscape features, and providing a home for fish and other aquatic dwellers like box turtles.

Though it will be an artificial feature, the pond can be made to look as though it has been there forever. Adorn the shoreline and pond with natural stone and a combination of aquatic and shoreline plants. 

A pond can go right up to the edge of the patio, which will bring nature closer to the hub of outdoor living. You could also install “floating” stepping stones that allow people to walk seemingly on the surface of the pond.

Reflecting Pool

For a more modern touch, a reflecting pool is a wonderful water feature that can adjoin any patio—in fact, a reflecting pool could also be an integral part of the patio itself. Much like its natural pond cousin, the reflecting pool can provide gorgeous reflections for natural and manmade features. Whether it’s sunken below the level of the patio or elevated and surrounded with a low seat wall, this serene feature will create a relaxing zen-like ambience. The right landscape lighting will turn the reflecting pool into a stunning feature after dark, as lights illuminate its depths to reveal decorative stone at the bottom.

Water Fountain

The simple act of moving water around and pushing it above the surface can create stunning visuals and soothing white noise for all sorts of lazy days, occasions, and gatherings. A fountain can be a wonderful part of any landscape design. It can be as small or grand as space allows, and its sonic qualities can also be prominent or subtle. Fountains can also be integral parts of a naturalistic pond or they can be stand-alone focal points. They can be perfect for beautifying an otherwise neglected corner of the patio. 

Waterfall

Perhaps the most grandiose and exciting of all backyard water features, the waterfall can be designed to fit any design theme. It can be a tribute to the natural stone of the surrounding environment, using lush vegetation to create an immersive space. It can also be an elegant and glassy stream of water that flows directly into the backyard pond, enhancing the patio and the surrounding outdoor living space with its visuals and the sounds of cascading water. Best of all, waterfalls are infinitely customizable as time goes on. Simply adding or moving a few rounded or flat stone slabs could completely change the experience. A waterfall can also be integrated into the patio itself, if you use a pondless style where the water falls directly into a catch basin filled with river rock or pebbles before recirculating the water to the top once again.

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