Plants may be included in the backyard pond in a number of ways. The most common method for most non-floating plants is to pot them up and set the pot in the pond. Some people put soil in pockets in the liner that allow the plants to take root and survive in the pond.

Pots in the Pond - With the advent of flexible liners for backyard ponds, there was a transition from soil bottoms. So, people began putting more plants into containers which are placed on shelves at different levels in the pond.

Water lilies, lotus and many other plants like to have their roots in soil rather than having them just float freely in the water. The roots and rhizomes of such plants need to be placed in containers before being positioned in the pond. Containers allow you to place the pots at the correct depth and to move them for a change of pace or for winter storage.