October: A Water Gardening Month To Remember
October is a transitory month, whether you live in the Midwest, the Northeast, the Southwest, or anywhere else in North America. Colors change from green to multitudinous shades of red, yellow, orange, purple, and brown. Temperatures change from hot and steamy, to cooler and occasionally chilly. Sports change from baseball to football, food changes from ice cream to hot soup, days grow shorter, and the old world just keeps right on a spinnin’.
But what do you have to know if you’re a pond enthusiast who loves their colorful and personable koi, their aquatic plants, and everything else that goes with the water gardening hobby when the month of October comes rolling around? Well, to tell you the truth, there are several basics that you’ll need to be prepared to cover, and they include the following things
First Remember the Fish
As the temperatures begin to sneak down into the 60’s on a regular basis, you should start feeding your fish a little bit less each day. Then when the temperature regularly hits 55 degrees, you must STOP FEEDING them completely. At that point, they’re beginning to go into hibernation for the winter, and feeding them after that tends to confuse and antagonize their metabolic system and cause digestive problems.
So the strategy at this time of year is to give them just enough nutrition so that, as they go into hibernation, like the proverbial grizzly bear out in the forest, your koi will have enough stored nutrition to make it through the long hard winter, while parked at the bottom of your pond. Of course people in the tropical climates just keep on doing what they’ve been doing, because they don’t contend with hibernation issues.
Then Remember the Leaves
Then, as those colorful leaves begin falling off the surrounding trees one by one (it may be late September before this begins), you may want to consider getting a net to throw over the pond in order to minimize the leaf population that ends up on the bottom. Any debris that ends up on the pond’s bottom inevitably deteriorates, biodegrades, and emits toxins, too much of which can cause problems for you fish. So try to minimize the amount of “stuff” that ends up in your pond by using a net.
And Finally,
Remember to Have Fun
There are two more things that you’re going to have to concern yourself with when it comes to winterizing your pond, including pruning your plants back, and presuming you want to shut down for the winter, unplugging your pump. But those are things that we’ll talk about in more detail later in this newsletter..
October is a month that is still alive with outdoor possibilities. So whatever you do, take full advantage of them. Light a fire in the fire pit if the weather calls for it. Roast some weenies or marshmallows, and finish off the 2005 season with a flurry of fun. After all, you and your family all deserve it, right?
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Winter Preparation
and Maintenance
The time is coming for old man winter to visit our area soon, and you’ll need to prepare your water garden for the cold temperatures. You’ll be happy to know that the preparations required do not consume a lot of time and certainly don’t threaten to take over an entire weekend. However, if you prefer, Pond Professors, Inc. has a full service maintenance division that will handle these chores for you. Simply fill out the included form and return it to our office.
Winter Waterfalls
If your waterfall pump moves water at a minimum of 2000 gallons per hours, it can be run through out the winter season, as long as it runs continually. There are different views on whether or not to leave your pond running for the season. You must be careful with ponds that have a long or slow moving stream. In such cases, ice damns can form and divert water over the liner. If you choose to run your pond through the winter, you’ll need to keep a close eye on the water, especially on extremely cold days and watch for ice dams that may have formed. Waterfalls operated through the winter will experience the same rate of evaporation and may need to be topping off on a weekly basis. Keeping the pond as full as possible will ensure plenty of room for the fish to survive.
Shutting Down the Waterfall
You can choose to shut down the waterfall for the winter. This will limit how much evaporation you will experience and save on your energy bill. If you have a skimmer or simply a pump, you will need to remove it to be stored in a bucket of water. Place the pump and the bucket of water in a frost free location. Remove all bags of biological media (lava rock) and any filter mats from the waterfall and skimmer box. Rinse them off and store them in a dry location until spring. Depending on the type of piping you have, we recommend all pipes be blown free of water to prevent cracking or splitting. If you have a container water garden, the best thing to do is to drain the water from the tub, invert it and store it outside for the winter. Remember to store your pump in a bucket of water for the season.
What about the fish?
Believe it or not ,with the right preparations, your fish will do just fine all winter in two feet of water. During the winter ,organic debris in the pond continues to decompose, giving off gases that are harmful to the fish. Keeping a hole open in the ice will prevent the buildup of these gases. Although your fish are sleeping their way through winter, oxygenated water is still vital to their survival. You can place a pump just below water but close to the surface to create bubbling and oxygenate the ponds water. It is a good idea to place the pump in a basket or a bucket and surround the intake of the pump with stones to prevent it from clogging or a fish from getting in the pump. Using a pump is not always dependable for keeping a hole open, another alternative is to use a floating heater in combination with the pump. Be sure to keep the floating heater away from the pumps water action to prevent it from turning on due to the waters vibrations. Large fish and heavy fish loads requie re-circulating water for oxygenation. Fish gasping at the surface is a sign that your pond lacks sufficient oxygen.
Plant Care
Hardy lilies placed deeper than 12 inches will over winter in the pond without difficulty. Simply cut the dead lily pads and stalks leaving two to three inches at the base of the plant. Hardy bog or marginal plants will need to be trimmed down to one or two inches above the water level. However it is up to the pond owner whether you do this in the fall or spring. Many people enjoy seeing the taller plants covered in snow and ice through the winter.
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