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Winterizing Your Pond
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Note: Its worth joining the MAKC just to get there Magazine.
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Fall Care of Koi
by Betty Roemer
reprint: From the Pages of the MAKC Magazine
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Each year, we discuss fall care of our Koi and ponds. Without repeating excessively - and yet recognizing the importance of proper care - I will briefly mention the basic steps.
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1. Remove all leaves and debris, because as they decompose, they use oxygen and release substances toxic to our koi.
2. As water temperature approaches 500F, lightly feed low protein foods and cooked vegetables, starches, and cereals.
3. Check for fish deseases. If there are any sores or signs of infections, treat them. Ask for help from our MAKC Health Committee or even bring the fish inside for the winter.
4. When water is 450F, discontinue all feeding. Fish will eat algae in the sides of the pond if they are hungry. Do not feed even if they beg and beg- until the water will be warn (500F) in the spring.
5. Keep an air hole open on the surface of the pond ice for pond gasses to escape (DO NOT POUND or SMASH a hole in the ice.)
6. A small air stone near the surface of the pond is fine - but do not use a large air source at the bottom of the pond as it will turn over the pond water and supercool the water. Pond water of 39-410F stratifies at the bottom and is great. Let the fish quietly hibernate. They need to rest and conserve their stored fat.
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Pond Care
By John Mirgon & Cyndie Thomas
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From the Colorado Water Garden Society web page. Stop by, you'll like it.
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Fall
Covering a pond with bird netting can save a great deal of work if pond is in a heavily-treed area. Remove any dead leaves or dead plant material from the pond. Trim back all plants and drop hardy Nymphaea to the lowest level of the pond. Move tropical plants indoors for over- wintering.
Winter
When water temperatures drop below 55 degrees, stop feeding fish and shut down the biological filter. Drain all water from any exterior piping to eliminate cracking or breaking from eventual freezing.
To keep an area open for exchange of gasses in a pond with fish, run a small submersible pump all winter. Check the GFCI to make sure it is functioning properly. Place the pump on a brick or pot with the outlet approximately 2" below the water surface. A tank aerator (available for stock tanks) also works for this purpose. Place air outlets 6"-8" below the water surface. If extremely cold temperatures cause the pond to completely freeze over, place a pan of boiling water on the surface to melt a hole in the ice. To decrease the possibility of losing the pot in the pond, tie a string or rope to the handle. Do not use a hammer or other instrument to break the frozen surface. This can kill fish.
If you are not overwintering fish there is no need to open the surface of the pond or be concerned about gases building, this has no effect on plants.
Add water as needed to replace any that has been lost from evaporation. Be sure to add it slowly to eliminate temperature changes which could adversely affect the fish. Remember to use a dechlorinator and chloramine remover at the rate specified if you add more than one inch of water.
If waterfall features are left running during the winter, it is important to visually inspect the pond water level to ensure winter freezes and thaws have not created a leakage of water.
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Direct comments about this Web Site to webmaster.
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