The lake/waterhole
The waterhole has been placed, so it creates a natural viewpoint from the terrace, and the boardwalk/bridge are facing that point (see page 31, picture 1, and design proposal on page 37).
Officially, the lake will be entitled as a waterhole, since a lake must be over 1 hectare in order to have the official title as a lake. Because the waterhole does not exceed a size of 100 m2 it will not be considered a protected area. All waterholes over 100 m2 are protected.
An extending of the water surface can be considered if it is desired to have a §3 protected area in the garden. A §3 protected area is difficult to change back again.
Establishment of new water holes requires permission from the municipality. Vordingborg Municipality has made several waterholes and lakes in the area - to support
biodiversity and especially the frogs and toads in the area. After a telephone conversation with the municipality of Vordingborg, it is mentioned that it is not difficult to get a permission to dig a waterhole for the wild in a private garden.
As reviewed on pages 26-29 during the analysis of the fauna, a lot of amphibians are found in the area.
In particular, the tree frog is richly represented in the area. The beautiful green tree frog is the only tree-climbing frog in Denmark.
This species has been almost extinct in Denmark. It has disappeared from 97% of the water holes where it was found in 1950 and could, therefore, be an exciting guest to have in the garden (Danish Environmental Protection Agency).
As frogs like to breed in warm shallow water, the sunniest part (see p. 24 for shadow diagram) of the lake is designed with low water.
As shown on the plan on the right, a few blackberry bushes should also be planted, as the tree frogs prefer to sit in these bushes.
As the area also serves as a bed for caterpillar, it can be expected that the frog will find food in the area (the frog feeds on insects).
Vegetations around the waterhole should be kept low, so it does not get overgrown.
The vegetation can be harvested in the fall and put into piles around the waterhole. Reptiles and amphibians can use it for hibernation during the winter.
Almost always an algae bloom will occur in the first 2-3 years in new water holes. This is because nutrients are released from the soil during excavation work (agricultural information n.d.),
