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Building your container water garden will be a snap if you get your supplies together ahead of time. Here we are assembling a container water garden made out of a whiskey barrel, but you can turn any container into an aquatic work of art. Let’s get started!

Find the perfect location for your water garden before you fill it with water. Once it is filled, the container will be very heavy and very difficult to move around.
Put the liner into your barrel, making sure that there are no holes in it. Liners made from rigid, black plastic can be purchased to fit many whisky barrels. Otherwise, a piece of rubber EPDM liner can be used.
Because different plants have different depth requirements, you’ll need to put something inside the container that the plants can sit on to raise them higher up in the water. Large, flat stones, bricks, sup-side-down pots are all items that can help you accomplish this. Set these inside your container to build shelves for your potted aquatic plants. Be sure to leave room for plants that can tolerate deeper water.
Using one of the shelves, you can now install the statuary pump. The desired effect will determine the location of the pump. For slight agitation of the water, place the pump just under the surface of the water with the discharge facing up. You can also attach a fountain head to the pump to create a fountain effect. Adjust the fountain head so it does not spray water outside the container.
Place and arrange the potted aquatic plants so they are sitting in the suggested water depth for that plant.
If you have chosen to use a water lily in your container water garden, Put the water lily in the deepest part of the barrel and begin filling with water. (Hint: You’ll want to make sure it’s cooler water. so run it for a while before filling.)
Once the water is at the desired level, add your floating aquatic plants.
Add any adornments, such as floating glass balls or moss to personalize your container water garden.
Plug in the pump and adjust as needed to create the effect that you want.
After allowing your water to sit for a few days, you can add small fish, such as gambusa mosquito fish or small goldfish. Be sure to monitor the temperature of the water to make sure that it doesn’t to warm for them and don’t forget to feed them.