Water Gardening in the wintertime is always a
challenge, even if you live in the desert! See the
Gardening in Alaska
for more wintertime ideas.
What
is a Garden Light Box? In the cold seasons of the year,
tropical plants especially need
extra care. Some pond
plants (such as frogbit) will
grow just fine with a regular
florescent light and others will
survive outdoors even in
freezing temperatures.
Other more tropical plants need
a little extra help with
lighting, heat, and humidity.
Water hyacinth is one such
plant.
Estimated Cost $0 - $25
All the supplies I used for
my light box I had on hand
and was able to get for
free. If supplies are
purchased, your light box
could cost about $25
Start with a 10
gallon aquarium
A garden light box
can be as large or
small as you desire!
A basic light box is
made with a
rectangular 10
gallon aquarium.
These can be
purchased used
for a few bucks or
new from the store
for $10 - $12
dollars. I had
an old cracked
aquarium, so my cost
was $0. You
can easily find a 10
gallon aquarium at a
thrift store or yard
sale. Craigslist.com
is also a great
place to find free
project materials.
A garden light box is a
cost effective and attractive
way to keep your tropicals
healthy throughout the winter
months.
Cut
and insert mirrors
This is where I
really lucked out.
I initially
purchased 6 - 12x12
mirror tiles for $12
at Lowes, but they
were the wrong size
and needed to be
cut. Then I
made friends with a
man who owns his own
glass business in
town. And, he
said that he would
be glad to cut scrap
glass for the garden
light box! My
cost was $0 dollars
for this.
▪
There
should be one mirror for the bottom
▪
One
for the backside
▪
One
for each end
▪
And if
you do not have a lid, clear glass for the top
You will need
to measure the inside of the aquarium for mirror size
and allow for a slight shorter measurement (about 1/16
inch) to allow for the glass to fit in the aquarium.
A tight fit is not necessary.
Select Lighting
If your aquarium
already has a dome
light that's great!
If not, then a
regular fluorescent kitchen cupboard
light
will also work.
The long fluorescent bulbs are great,
because you can
install red or blue
grow bulbs. A 100 watt
daylight bulb can be
purchased at Lowes.
Any higher wattage
(such as a 400 or
1,000 watt flood
light bulb) needs a
special fixture for
fire safety reasons.
I already had an old
aquarium dome lamp, so my cost was
zero. However,
lighting might not
be necessary if your
light box is placed
in a window
facing the sunlight where the sun's
rays
can reflect the
mirrors. I
enjoyed the look of
my light box so
much, that I turned
toward my living
area.
Choose
your Plants
and
Install
The
plants that
I need to
winter over
in my garden
light box
are water
hyacinth,
frogbit, and
water
lettuce.
The
important
tip to
keeping
these plants
is warmth
and
humidity.
Your light
box will
provide just
that!
The last
thing to
do is
find a
place
for
aquarium,
fill it
with
water,
fish,
and
plants,
and
that's
it!
If you
do not
have any
water
garden
plants,
they can
be found
for free
at
The
Aquatic
Plant
Exchange
for the
cost of
postage.
Remember,
even
though
you
might
have
fish in
the
aquarium,
you will
still
need to
use
fertilizer
(such as
pond
tabs or Osmocote
brand
fertilizer).
Fish are
cheap
and easy
to find. Every
county
has some
kind of
mosquito
abatement
program,
so you
can even fill
your
tank
with
free
minnows!
I placed
4 baby
goldfish
from my
pond into
the
tank,
and with
the
mirrors,
it looks
as if I
have 8
or more
fish!
Everyone
Loves
It!
These
pics
certainly
do not
do this
project
justice!
Seeing
how a
pond
looks
from
under
the
water
with the
feathery
roots
and how
the
goldfish
live is
actually
pretty
fascinating.
This was
a fun
and easy
pond
project
and I
look
forward
to
seeing
yours
too!
Choose
your Plants
and
Install
The last
thing to
do is
find a
place
for
aquarium,
fill it
with
water,
fish,
and
plants,
and
that's
it!
If you
do not
have any
water
garden
plants,
they can
be found
for free
at
