How to Make a Water Feature Interesting

When you're placing water features on your landscape, you will do well to employ concepts used in creating the intriguing man made Lake Harris at the Mirage Casino in Las Vegas. You don't have to go out to Las Vegas to see Lake Harris. You can search for 3356 Las Vegas Boulevard South, Las Vegas on Google and then click on street view. Then take a virtual walk in a southerly direction along the sidewalk on the west side.
 
As you take the walk, you will notice that almost no section of the lake resembles another. I say almost because the landscapers have even employed the principle that sections of symmetry appearing in a random fashion (unpredictable predictability) add interest to a landscape. Lake Harris changes in  size, shape, and border on both the sides close to and far away from the pedestrians. In some places there are waterfalls that fed the lake, in others flat tropical like vegetation. On some borders there are trees, on others a small or large rock outcropping made of conjoined stone of unpredictable shapes and sizes. On one part of the far bank, there is a large uninhabited rain forest, with tropical ground cover,  bushes, and trees of various heights, shapes and species. The many waterfalls vary one from another, with falls that have three, four, five levels, or seven levels. There are narrow ribbon falls, horseshoe shaped falls that separate one section of the lake from another, and a wide semi circular falls, with intriguing rock outcroppings scattered in its lower five levels.

 When you're planning to install water features in your own backyard, consider adding variety to your lagoons, streams, and waterfalls, and their borders. You might also want to employ variety in the size shape, species, and height of your surrounding vegetation.

Resources: If you live in the Yorktown Heights, NY, Westchester County, or Putnam County area of New York State, call the Turf Barbers at 914 302 2469; 2929 Quinlan Street Yorktown Heights, NY 10598; http://www.theturfbarbers.com for the tops in water feature landscaping and outdoor masonry.