Front Falls

• Plant a rock garden in the front entry and add a pondless waterfall for good chi energy. Spread gravel in a curved area enclosed by a wall or fence on one side and a paver walk to the house on the other. Set decorative boulders -- just a few -- here and there along the gravel bed. Sink a pre-formed pond basin with a pump under a boulder with a shelf-like protrusion of rock. Disguise the basin with gravel and run the water hose or pipe up the back of the boulder, camouflaging it with ornamental grasses. When water pours over the rim of the stone, it falls on the gravel below and disappears into the hidden reservoir to be re-circulated.
  
  

Twin Falls

• Don't stop at one waterfall. Double the music and the pond aeration with two different water sources. For a deep Koi pond in a corner of the backyard, cap a low wall around the pond with flagstones to make seating. Edge the pond with flagstones, grasses and groundcovers for a natural look. Stack more flagstones in a far corner to make a multi-tiered waterfall that spills out and over flat rocks to finally sheet into the pond. Set a stone urn, aged with paint, stucco or cement, in among the grasses and stones and tilt it on its side so water can pour out of it and fall into the pond.
  
  

Go for the Heights

• If you have a steep backyard, you have the makings of a dramatic water feature. Emphasize the natural landscape by highlighting terraces with boulders and flat rocks that invite intrepid guests to climb the slopes. Make it real theater with a plunging waterfall that empties into a deep stone-lined pond below. You will need a powerful pump for a high waterfall in order to send a large volume of water from the pond to the top of the slope. But the vista is worth it. The mild thunder of the falls lets you imagine you're off on a wilderness vacation just outside the back door.
  
  

Backyard Brook

• Slant a boulder-strewn stream into a goldfish pond under a pergola near the patio. Build a boulder waterfall at the headwaters of the stream -- out by the back fence. From the dappled shade of the pergola or a patio table, you will be able to hear the musical fall of the water and see the length of the stream from waterfall to pond. Plant butterfly bushes and hummingbird vines in among the grasses and groundcovers growing between the boulders. To avoid the high cost of Koi, purchase two or three feeder goldfish that sell for about $.25 at any pet store, they grow into large, handsome fish in a very short time. Then head for the backyard where the wild things are, fluttering around the foliage and glinting gold just under the water.