100% chemical-free · pristine water quality year-round
Refúgio Botânico designs and builds living aquatic ecosystems for Mediterranean gardens. Plants and microorganisms keep the water clear. We are an aquatic plant nursery and a builder, not a garden centre.
Show ponds in Alpedrinha, some running for years. See the water before you decide.
Water is the driving force of all nature.
Leonardo da Vinci
If there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water.
Loren Eiseley
We forget that the water cycle and the life cycle are one.
Jacques-Yves Cousteau
Nature always wears the colors of the spirit.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Three ways into the water
01
A true wildlife paradise. Aquatic plants and microorganisms work in symbiosis to keep the water clear. These ornamental ponds are built without the use of liners. Since they experience fluctuating water levels in Meditteranean climates, the vegetation is selected to be perfectly adapted to the site.
02
Mechanical and biological filtration together. Constructed wetlands or external filters give plants and microorganisms the conditions to keep a pond clear throughout the year.
03
Planting projects drawn for your pond, from a working collection of 120 aquatic plants. Thoughtful planting, not a trolley at a garden centre.
Natural swimming pools
In natural swimming pools, large external filters are at the heart of the system. Lots of oxygen and flow provide microorganisms all they need to efficiently break down organic waste and other pollutants. The results are long-term, with fresh water the colour of a tropical sea.
Circulation and skimming, so that sediment and floating debris do not sit in the swimming zone.
Wetland zones and external filters where aquatic plants and microorganisms work together to break down pollutants. Oversized filters concentrate debris outside the pond, limiting maintenance inside.
Less time with a net: scheduled circulation, skimmers and top-off systems sized to the pond, not to a catalogue default.
Correct planting and grading around the water prevents the system from having to absorb excessive amounts of soil and leaves during rainfall.
Indication
Natural swimming pond
€1,200/m²
Indication for a standard 75 m² pond, VAT included. Above 100 m² the price per square metre drops. Type of filtration and automation set the final figure.
Ecosystem pond
€120–245/m²
Ornamental ponds built as functioning aquatic ecosystems. Specified planting makes them work ecologically, not potted plants picked from a retail bench.
From idea to reality
By appointment. Walk the show ponds, see how they sit in the garden, and understand maintenance on ponds that have already matured.
We come to your site. The type of pond, the surrounding land, sun exposure and water parameters decide design and filtration, which is never a standard drawing.
Designs are hand drawn. The quote states the filtration, the level of automation and the planting.
A lawyer-drafted contract covers guarantees and payment. Construction of a 75–120 m² swimming pond usually takes 10–14 days.
Conservation area
Since 2026 Refúgio Botânico is classified as a Biodiversity Reserve. Ten hectares of regenerating native deciduous forest occupy the valley that used to be maritime pine and mimosa. Quercus pyrenaica, Fraxinus angustifolia and Viburnum tinus mark the canopy, with Phillyrea angustifolia, Ruscus aculeatus and Polygonatum odoratum in the undergrowth.
Alpedrinha
Estrada da Touca, 6230-064 Alpedrinha