‘That’s Jaws. That’s Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds. There’s Spicy Parmesan Popcorn. There’s Mickey Mouse,” Annette Manus explained, peering into the water. “We name them all.”
What exactly is Annette Manus talking about?
Fish, of course.
Manus and her husband, Adam, have a growing collection of finned friends swimming in their garden oasis in Marysville.
Each colorful creature is a like a reward for the couple, who just put the finishing touches on a two-year, do-it-yourself project this year.
Two elaborate, fish-filled ponds and a river connecting the two have river rock, boulders, waterfalls and a collection of tropical accents, including spiky palm trees and colorful cannas, coleus and celosia.
They have music. They have lighting. Yes, in spite of the restrictions of their small lot in a relatively new development, they have it all.
Their west-facing backyard is the perfect place to sit in the sun, play with plants or throw spur-of-the-moment barbecues.
They even have an oscillating fan that hooks up to a hose for a constant spray of air and mist on those extra hot days.
“This is the first summer we’ve really enjoyed it,” Annette Manus said. “We come home to a resort every day. We come home to vacation.”
Though the couple poured their next few years’ vacation money into the project, they still did it on a budget.
Patience and a knack for finding second-hand, discounted or castoff supplies helped.
They waited for seasonal equipment and plants to go on clearance at local stores and nurseries. They gathered free boulders from land cleared for new developments. They found koi and palms on eBay and Craig’s List.
Of course, as owners of Sound Remodel and Construction, they were already pretty project savvy.
Adam Manus actually came up with the water feature idea while working on a Mukilteo remodeling job. His clients wanted a pond and a bridge in addition to other major home improvements. He had never built a pond but said he would give it a try.
During his constant study and work on the project, he realized a pond might be an option for his own home too.
The Manuses, who honeymooned in Hawaii four years ago, yearned for a taste of the tropics within the confines of their two-story, four-bedroom home on a 100-by-60-foot parcel.
“My dream is to live on the water,” said Adam Manus, “but when you need a four- or five-bedroom house, there’s no way.”
Annette Manus was game for a big change. She had lived in the home for six years before they were married and hadn’t had time to do much with the yard. It was a difficult site to improve.
“It sloped all the way down,” she said. “It was horrible. I would mow the weeds.”
Adam Manus set out to read every book he could find on water features. They enlisted Adam Manus’ three children to help move rocks and earth.
“We designed it as we went,” Adam Manus said, remembering his wife’s tolerance of a John Deere backhoe in the front yard as the project took a backseat to contract projects. “She never stressed me out about getting it done.”
Now word is spreading about the Manuses’ backyard paradise. Neighbors knock on the door, hoping for a quick peek at the retreat, which also boasts a large inflatable pool, complete with a filtering system, an access ladder, water toys and an outdoor shower.
Soon it won’t be quite as nice outside, but that won’t stop the Manus family from enjoying the backyard, where they keep the pond lights on and the water going for constant visual and aural interest.
“Adam and I sleep with our window wide open even in the dead of winter,” Annette Manus said. “We can’t stand to close the window because the sound of the waterfall and trickling stream is like a dream. I can’t even explain the pleasure and tranquility it brings to us every day.”
Plus, there are always the birds to watch and fish to feed, Adam Manus said, throwing bits of food into the smaller of their two ponds in an effort to scare up a reclusive catfish.
“There he is,” he said, spotting the small, black grouchy animal, mouth nipping at the water’s surface.
“He looks like a shark,” Annette Manus said. “Look at his white whiskers in the front. It’s so cool.”
Reporter Sarah Jackson: 425-339-3037 or sjackson@ heraldnet.com.Avoid these mistakes
Check out these top mistakes to avoid from the 2005 book “Water Gardening for the Northwest” by Teri Dunn.
Do not site your water garden in a shady or secluded spot. Water plants need sunshine to thrive and produce flowers. Also, you don’t want to spend all your time dredging Douglas fir needles or other tree debris out of your pond.
Don’t be too quick to empty or fill an apparently algae-plagued pond. People often panic when they see algae accumulating and want it fixed immediately. Algae, however, is normal in the early life of a pond. Once the pond reaches a state of balance and you put in enough plants to cover two-thirds of the water’s surface, algae should decrease.
Do not scrub algae off the sides. Algae forms on pond sides naturally over time and is not harmful when it is part of the pond’s natural ecosystem. Swiping at it only dislodges it and clouds the water.
Don’t plant too soon. Hardy plants can go in the water at about 50 degrees, while tropical plants, such as tropical water lilies, should be planted in water that is about 70 degrees.
Do not overfeed the fish. Give fish only what they can consume during the first five minutes of feeding. Uneaten food breaks down and makes the water murky.
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