The DIY Garden Feature That Outshines A Typical Bird Bath

Bird baths are a classic and beloved way to encourage birds to visit your garden. Unfortunately, they also come with a fair amount of upkeep. You regularly have to clean your bird bath to prevent diseases and mosquitoes, which can not only harm the birds but also you and your family. If you still want to enjoy a water feature and provide birds with water without dealing with all the downsides of bird baths, consider building a DIY water feature with an arched trellis. 

Keeping water moving and circulating is a great way to decrease the amount of cleaning you need to do with a water feature. While this is often accomplished with just a small waterfall or fountain, on TikTok, Lee Dahlberg shared his own clever take. His creation boasts an arched trellis that continually drips water back into a raised pond. Considering how popular sprinklers can be with birds, including hummingbirds and even scarlet tanagers, this elegant and soothing feature is sure to be as big a hit with birds as it will be with your guests.

To make your own gorgeous water feature with a trellis, you'll need a basin of some sort for your pond, a submersible pump with tubing to attach to it, and, of course, an arch. After you secure your pump to the bottom of your pond, attach the tubing and carefully run it up the side of the arch, using zip ties to secure it. The water should fall from the top of the trellis, so make sure you have long enough tubing.

Fill your pond, and then, once you're sure the water is over the level of your pump, you can turn it on. If you're not happy with the amount of water dripping down from the top of the water feature, you can play with the pump's flow adjuster and try out different fountain heads until you find a combination that provides the effect you're looking for. If you want your feature to attract hummingbirds, keeping the water falling as a gentle mist is best. 

Once your water feature is up and running, try adding lights and using plants and other decor to hide the tubing and zip ties. While your water feature shouldn't require as much cleaning as a bird bath, you'll still need to add water to make up for any water lost to evaporation. You should also be sure to remove any leaves or other organic material that falls into the pond. Locating your water feature in a shady area should help to limit algae growth.