I Have A Pond!

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S

Sproutling

Guest
It is but a little one, 90 gallons is as big as I can have with the limited space.
I can use some help here,
I was wondering how do you keep your water clear ?
I had clear water until one day in mid August then the green settled in.
I use Barley Straw which is safe for frogs and fish and plants

And how do you over winter plant life? In cold zone 5b?

I have successfully over wintered my fish last year, this year I closed the pond due to animals eating all my frogs and fish I brought them inside until March-April rolls around.

Lets talk perennial pond plants and clear water.

Post your ponds here!
We would love to see them! I know there are some great ponders here!
Here are a few shots,not the best of shots but...
The water feature is Mariam's used cage,she was our dearly beloved ferret that is not longer with us. I use the top to keep pest from eating my frog and fish.
The frogs are Herby and Matilda(in my pond) which are no longer with me.A rodent of some kind may have gotten for Herby this past season(I'm guessing) although I have seen several predators.

Show your pics!


Sproutling:D
 

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love it...we no longer have a pond ....was enjoyable though...we used the barley straw also and never seemed to have aproblem...even in the heat of the summer in Sacramento...(thankfully we are now back in Oregon...)maybe you need to change your straw more often or add more ....
 
Some day I would love to have a pond. Sorry that I can't help you Kale but will be reading this thread to learn more about them
Thanks for sharing yours with us
 
I used half a bag of straw was told 1/5th of half a bag.
Maybe changing will do the trick or maybe less fish?
I started out with feeders goldfish and koi then added frogs and plants.
I turned my pond around this season after removing the fishies of course*lol
I have it in what I am hoping to be a little more shade.


Tip of the day..Do not place one tiny duckweed in your pond! As cute as they may be.

I use it for my water features but not my pond,did it one year and lost sleep over the filter getting clogged.It was so bad. Actually it was a nightmare,especially me not knowing what was causing the pump to get full of debris.


Sproutling:)
 
I have been lucky the last couple of years...no green. And I haven't done a thing to make it clear! I have a lot of shade after about 11 and I do think that makes a difference.
 
Why certainly!
Shade will do it.
Sad story is, when you go to Ponding "seminars" *LOL!
they say full sun and put 3 plants of 3 kinds to keep the levels and bacterial and Ph working together.Unfortunately, they were "sale people"..pretty sad.

I did want to move my pond where I knew it would get even more shade but ,that would ruin my raised veggie bed designs and cost me many hours of labor I wasn't up to, time would not allow it.

That being said, do you have plants growing in your pond and how do you over winterize it? Oh,first off,how deep is your pond?

Kale:)
 
I dug my pond too shallow! One end is 12" deep and at the deepest part it is about 30". It's about 12 feet long and 6 feet wide. I have water iris, a canna, and water lilies. I started with 8 tiny fish and now have about 20...some up to 3". I have a waterfall...that is basically for aeration.(plus I love the sound)

This is my third pond. The others were bigger and deeper. I had somewhat elaborate filters, etc and winterized them like a nut. They always got green and were yucky in the spring. This pond...I simply put the plants in the deep end and turn the pump off. I clean it out good in the spring...all the leaf muck...haven't lost a fish nor plant and it stays clear as can be. I can't tell you to do this because it sure seems lazy. But it works for me!
 
Nice size pond, Shinekeeper *!! About the size of my yard*LOL

Do you use a heater or bubbler for winterizing?


What did you use for a liner...? Hummm ...that and shade, oh, what kind of water do you have or did you use?
I started off at one point using rainwater, I filtered once it got into the pond. I'm telling you it is gorgeous, water fall and all ...then green I cant stand the green so I work with it, waiting for the green to go and stay away. I have to spend my saved money on straw.


Are any of your plants a perennial?
Canna are rhizomes how deep in the water to you put them?
What soil medium do you use?

I was hesitant on putting my regular o'l cannas in my pond, I tried elephant ears and they kind of turned yellow and nearly died, I didn't have them deep/covered only but about 4inches in the water. The medium I used was mostly sand that I had saved from the ground, some clay may have been in there....

Kale:)
 
I used roofing rubber. It is heavier than what you can buy at Home Depot. Some people say it is toxic to fish and plants. I am proof, that in my case, that is incorrect. I also used city water straight out of the hose.

I do not heat or aerate over the winter...the fish go to the bottom and hibernate in the leaf muck.

All my plants are simply in baskets filled with pea gravel. No soil. Well..the canna may have a little soil from when I bought it. It is a regular canna, but sold as a water plant and it did great. I put it in about 4" of water. The water lilies are the deepest at about 2' and the water iris will grow in any depth.

I had much more elaborate things in my other ponds and it seems I had more trouble. This one...I imagine a little pool of water in the creekbed and figure nobody has to tend it...so I just let this one go. I do not feed the fish and I think that helps keep it cleaner.

The worst problem I have is the neighbors' dog. If she hits it right, her toenail is going to poke a hole...and then Harold will owe me $75.00 for new rubber! Unless I feel generous and try to patch it. I lost everything years ago just like that...it drained in February and my foot long fish all froze to death because I couldn't do anything with the cold.
 
OHHHHHHHHH I was going to use the roofing rubber !!!!!!!!!! Was told that.
So I didn't! I could have bought it for 8$ 20ft,7ft!!!!!!!!!! I was going to make one like a stream to use less room.
I tell you those seminar people grrrrrrrrrrrr me!!!!!!!!!!!

Good for you!

One year I lost my froggie that way ,only I didnt even have water in it when I thought I closed/sealed it for winter. The snow melted enough for her to go in and think she was safe:(
Im only 19inches deep so come spring I was devastated,She sure seemed to love me. Came right to me to hold, Friends came to see I was telling the truth!*LOL
I just called her ....she was a sweetheart poor Matilda.
I named her after a lady Senior I knew/ loved / love from the 80's.
It was sad.
I slowed down on pets,they only break my heart when I loos them.

I think Ill try the Cannas I have may left..

Kale:)
 
Here are some pictures of my pond and fish. I don't feed my fish anymore either. They eat the plant roots. My pond is in a lot of shade and it stays clear to. All I use anymore is a filter. I used to use all kinds of stuff to try to keep it clear but nothing worked until I stopped feeding the fish and just left the water alone. I read somewhere once where you had to let the pond water ripen. So I stopped working so hard on it and its doing so much better.
 

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Maggie, Simply soothing pond area!
You have the same pond I do,how do you over winter them?

Here is my biggest fish until a critter got him this year:( He started out as a tiny feeder2years earlier.
My water will stay clear if I put water hyacinth &lettuce but at the end of the season they shed their roots and clog my filter and on a dry day they will absorb
lots of water.I find my pond with inches of water gone!
So..I just put those plants in non filtered water features.
Been looking for plants that will not do that to me!
Are /were your fish feeders and how old are they?


Thanks for sharing your pond pics they are lovely!

Kale:)
 
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Very nice...and hi, Maggie!

Here's my pond. I have since moved the waterfall to the right, water comes out of an old well pump. I use the fountain in my smaller pond.These are not the greatest pics.
 

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Kale, I pull all my annual plants out and put in the compost pile. The perennials I just cut off all the roots that come out of the pot and cut the tops off to. I put in a water hyacinth this year and it went wild. My fish are about 3 years old and in the winter they hide somewhere on the bottom I guess because I don't see them all winter. My pond sometimes will freeze and I will break the ice. Other than that I don't do anything to mine. I just let it take care of its self.
Shinekeeper you have a very nice pond.
 
I have two ponds, newly created so no pics except the building process (oh my back).

tell me everything about this barley straw, please?

I have tons of questions, and will share pictures as soon as I can get a few more programs installed on my computer
 
Beautiful ponds girls, they are such a nice feature to have in the garden. Shine Deb didn't you post pictures of your pond while you were building it and landscaping the front of your house?
 
Yes, ma'am. You have a good memory, Swindy. And Scarez...I can identify with that aching back!

Actually...this is another pond, a bit smaller than the one I photographed each step of. That one got a doggie toenail hole and drained out in February...all my fish froze to death:(
 
Oh I m sorry I thought I replied,
Be careful when breaking the ice,the gasses that will be released can kill your livestock!
If you can put a hollow pole into the pond that extends out of the water it will help prevent the gases from being released thus not causing death.
It is a delicate situation.You may need something there to have at least one spot for the gasses to be released.
Scarez,

Barley Straw is available at your pet supply store ,it cost around or under 10.00 and you place it in your pond in a netted bag of some sort (I use the onion bags) and put it near the fastest moving water do not let it sink!
It may need to be tied with a string (you can hide is you prefer) outside the pond.
Use way more then they tell you and replace after a few to several weeks.

Shinekeeper,That is absolutely heart breaking...I so sorry to hear!
I lost my froggie Matilda last year.Found her frozen this past April when I opened my pond.I didn't leave water in it . I thought I had it sealed with wood and plastic.
She found her way in it and it was nearly filled from snow melt which I thought I removed as it snowed.I sure should have peeked inside to see if any water got in,
didnt even think of it.
I hope you are ok now.It will take some time to heal from that..
Hang in there I am..


Kale
 
You're so sweet, Kale. Such a heartwarming person. I'm sorry about Matilda, too.

I was sad about not being able to do anything about the falling water level, I mean it was February and frigid! But...ya just start over.
 


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