• Design a water garden with wetland areas as wellfern image by Alistair Dick from Fotolia.com
  
  To create a water garden in the temperate forests of the Pacific Northwest, you need to understand the plants that work well in this environment. Shade plants that prefer cool temperatures thrive in a Pacific water garden. Design a garden with streamside or wetland plants to create an environment that contains water plants and wetland plants.
  
  

Designing a Water Garden in the Pacific Northwest

• Create a fountain, pondless waterfall, or pond to create a centerpiece of a water gardenfountain image by asmik from Fotolia.com
  
  Pacific water gardeners live in a rainy climate and often need to look no further than the low spots in the garden to find a likely water feature. If you have a low, damp spot in the garden, this is the perfect place to create a pond or a marshland. Dig a hole, add a pond liner to the hole, and you will find that the pond stays damp all year.
  
  Those who are installing fountains and other water features that require a solid foundation for a concrete base will need to install these in a drier, more stable location.
  
  Another factor specific to water garden design in the Pacific Northwest is the influx of needles from coniferous trees. Pacific water gardeners need to be wary of needles dropping from the trees. Unlike gardeners in climates with deciduous trees, gardeners in the Pacific Northwest need to have a good filter for a pond or water feature all year, since coniferous trees drop their needles year round.
  
  

Choosing Plants for a Pacific Water Garden

• Rushes and sedges are ideal plants for the Pacific water gardenBull Rushes image by T^i^ from Fotolia.com
  
  Water plants that are ideal for the Pacific water garden must be plants that are hardy through cool temperatures, since the temperate rainforest does not get very warm in the summer time. These plants include annual or cold-hardy water lilies and rushes and sedges like the bullrush or cattail. Line the edges of the pond or water feature with lush and gorgeous mosses to soften the look of the water feature.
  
  

Choosing Plants to Surround a Pacific Wetland Garden

• Ferns are ideal plants to place around the Pacific water gardenfern image by Lytse from Fotolia.com
  
  Choose wetland plants to surround the Pacific water garden. These plants include the heart-shaped False Lily of the Valley, fern species like the Maidenhair Fern and the Lady Fern, and shrubs like the salmonberry and thimbleberry. Non-native species like hosta plants and irises also thrive in the damp places beside the Pacific water garden.