协会成立与早期活动
休斯敦池塘协会 2004 年由 Dan Cook 在德州休斯敦创立，最初定位于池塘建造与维护、水生植物、鱼类及配套景观的爱好者互助团体。会章规定每月第一个周六中午十二点在会员家中聚会，会员每年交会费 50 美元。早期聚会地点散在休斯敦西区、凯蒂（Katy）、金斯伍德（Kingwood）等地的会员家中，2006 年首次与 Lone Star Koi Club 联合举办 Water Garden and Pond Tour，让公众可以购票参观九户会员的私家池塘。
年度池塘参观与会员开放日
Water Garden and Pond Tour 是协会最具代表性的活动，2006 年起每年 5 月举办，分两个周六向公众开放 9-10 个会员池塘，单张成人票 10 美元、两日通票，参观区域覆盖休斯敦市中心、Spring、Cypress、Katy、Montgomery 等地。2009 年起，池塘参观与 IWGS White List Symposium 联动，关注外来水生植物在德州的合法销售。2019 年的池塘参观在 5 月 4 日与 11 日举行，分别开放南线与北线池塘。
会员池塘与月会地点
协会在 2019 年的会员池塘横跨休斯敦都会区多个城镇，包括西休斯敦、The Woodlands、Sugar Land、Richmond、Pearland、Montrose、Clear Lake City、The Heights、Katy、Spring、Cypress 等十多个聚落。每月聚会按惯例在会员家中轮换，2006 年的两次聚会在 Katy 的 Gary Sidwell 宅与 Kingwood 的 Marion Dougherty 宅举行；2019 年的聚会分别在 Santa Fe（8 月）、Galveston（10 月）、Spring（次年 2 月）举行。
协会隶属与立法影响
协会同时隶属于 Texas Association of Pond Societies 与 International Waterlily and Water Gardening Society（IWGS），是德州池塘园艺团体网络中的活跃一员。2010 年前后，会员 Rolf 与 Anita Nelson 推动德州水族植物 “白名单”立法讨论，最终促成州参议员 Glenn Hegar 撤回 Texas Parks and Wildlife Department 的相关提案，避免了对外来水生植物销售的不当限制。该事件成为协会公开参与州级水生园艺立法的重要案例。
FAQ 与会员实操经验
协会整理的 FAQ 汇集会员多年积累的池塘维护经验，包括如何用塑料鳄鱼头驱赶吃鱼的水鸟、何时给睡莲翻盆（至少每年一次）、金鱼与锦鲤对水生植物的不同影响、池塘与景观水池在深度与过滤上的差别等。这些问答已成为新入会员快速上手池塘维护的入门资料。2019 年起 Jeff Stone 接任主要联系人，承担会员联络与会务协调。
Founding and Early Activities
Houston Pond Society was founded by Dan Cook in 2004 in Houston, Texas. The society is organized around four shared interests: pond building and maintenance, water plants, koi and goldfish, and complementary landscaping. Monthly meetings were held at noon on the first Saturday at a member’s home, with annual dues of $50 per family. Early gatherings took place across West Houston, Katy, and Kingwood; the first Water Garden and Pond Tour, jointly organized with Lone Star Koi Club, opened nine member ponds to the public in 2006.
Annual Water Garden and Pond Tour
The Water Garden and Pond Tour is the society’s signature event. First held in 2006, it runs across two Saturdays each May. Visitors buy a $10 adult ticket valid for both days and may tour roughly nine to ten member ponds scattered around Houston, Spring, Cypress, Katy, and Montgomery. From 2009 onward the tour was paired with the IWGS White List Symposium. The 2019 edition was held on May 4 and May 11, with the south and north routes opening different sets of member ponds.
Member Ponds and Meeting Locations
By 2019 the society’s member ponds stretched across Greater Houston: West Houston, The Woodlands, Sugar Land, Richmond, Pearland, Montrose, Clear Lake City, The Heights, Katy, Spring, Cypress, and others. Monthly meetings rotated among member homes; the November 2006 meeting was held at Gary and Terry Sidwell’s home on Durfey Lane in Katy, while the December meeting was a joint Christmas party with Lone Star Koi Club at Marion and Debbie Dougherty’s home in Kingwood. In 2019 meetings moved to Santa Fe (August), Galveston (October), and Spring (February).
Affiliations and Legislative Impact
The society is an affiliate of both the Texas Association of Pond Societies and the International Waterlily and Water Gardening Society (IWGS). Members Rolf and Anita Nelson led efforts on the Texas aquatic plant ‘white list’ debate, ultimately persuading State Senator Glenn Hegar to withdraw the proposal at the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. This remains a notable case of the society engaging with state-level aquatic horticulture policy.
FAQ and Hands-On Experience
The society’s FAQ distills years of hands-on knowledge from members: using a weighted plastic alligator head to deter fish-eating birds, repotting water lilies at least once a year, how koi damage aquatic plants while goldfish usually do not, and the practical differences between koi ponds and landscape-feature ponds in depth and filtration. By 2019 Jeff Stone had become the primary contact, handling member inquiries and coordinating meetings.
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