Austin Pond Society

Mark & Debi Akin built their house 28 years ago when an above-ground spring flowed through the back yard, leaving the ground continuously swampy. With his UT degree in Civil Engineering, Mark envisioned capturing and controlling the spring water and designing the house slab supported on the sides, like a bridge.

The spring water now emerges in a single spot behind the house, releasing about 5,000 gallons of water a day. It flows into the 45,000-gallon lily pond, then flows into a 166,000-gallon reservoir that stores water for irrigation. This amazing backyard nature preserve includes 200 species of plants and the pond blooms with about 50 water lilies and 30 border plants!