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Water Garden News ********************************************************************** IN THIS ISSUE OF THE WATER GARDEN NEWS
====================================================================== Preparing Your Pond For Fall & Winter by ERIK TATE Yet another summer is now in the books, and now we are ready for autumn and winter is soon to follow. It is important to understand our ponds and their needs as cooler weather is coming in. A few preparations now will make this transition easier and have the pond better prepared for next spring. Climate will determine how soon these preparations need to be made. Some of us may need to start now, while others have a few weeks to make plans. Those who live in climates where your pond does not go dormant can ignore the bulk of this article and carry on as usual. Keeping
up with the Leaves The leaf netting will not only keep the leaves out of your pond but will help protect your fish from predators such as birds and raccoons which are more of a problem in the winter when there are no plants for the fish to hide under. The fish's metabolism is slower in cold water and the fish would have a difficult time escaping predators. If you don't use leaf netting you may want to consider a Koi Kastle. This will provide a place for your fish to hide making them more comfortable and safer. Feeding
the Fish As the water temperatures continue to drop to below 60 degrees you should feed your fish only two or three times a week. It can take your fish two or three days to digest food at this temperature. Once the temperature drops below 50 degrees you should stop feeding altogether until spring when the water temperature remains above 50. Reminder: The water temperature is what is relevant, not the air temperatures. A good pond thermometer makes things easier. We are often asked about feeding during warm spells in the winter. If it will be warm enough for the water temperature to remain above 50 for several days, you can feed a little. But, it is better to err on the side of less food. If the fish feel like they need to eat they should be able to get what they need from algae and other material already in the pond. The biological filter may also not be able to keep up with food being added at this time. Sludge
and Bacteria Remember to continue use of beneficial bacteria. Microbe Lift Autumn Winter Prep is made for cooler weather and can continue to be used throughout the winter. These bacteria will reduce maintenance by breaking down sludge and debris as well as sustaining biological activity throughout the cold winter months. You should have stopped feeding your plants by this point. As the foliage on your hardy plants begins to die back you should remove any dead and dying leaves and place the plant deep enough in the pond to keep the roots from freezing. While it is true that some marginal plants will survive even if their roots freeze solid it is best to lower all of your plants below the ice zone. Removing dead plant material now is much easier than removing it after it becomes sludge. As organic material decomposes in the pond toxic gasses are produced. These gasses escape harmlessly into the atmosphere unless there is a coating of ice over the pond in which case they can be harmful to the fish. To prevent this from happening keep an area of the pond surface free of ice. You can do this with a pond deicer. The deicer has a built in thermostat that will turn the unit on when the water gets cold enough and back off as the water temperature rises. The ThermoCube is a device that can be used along with a deicer to limit the decier kicking on unneccesarily thus saving on your energy bill. The Deicer responds to water temperature, but the ThermoCube responds to air temperature.Protect
the Plants A basement can provide protection if you remove the plants and store them either in their original containers or in peat moss. You could build a temporary shelter over the pond. Lumber or PVC pipe can be used to construct a framework over the pond. Place clear plastic over this and weight the plastic down with soil or stone. This frame should hold the plastic a few feet above the water. Greenhouse type plastic is best, but construction grade plastic should last through one winter. If you leave enough room for a chair, this can be a great place to sit on a cold winter day. This method works very well and is basically like moving the pond one USDA hardiness zone higher. On clear days the sun warms the water and, even if covered with snow, there is good insulation over the pond. Some tropical plants can be wintered over this way in mild winters, even if you live in zone 6 or 7. Some plants do not like being submerged in the pond through the winter. Iris ensata, a Japanese Iris, should be removed from the pond and planted in the yard. When new growth starts in spring it can be placed back in the pond for the summer. Lobelia cardinalis (Cardinal Flower) should be removed from the pond and planted in the yard for the winter. This plant should have a few inches of mulch over it as well. You will have more success wintering over Cannas if you remove the rhizomes from the pot and store in slightly damp peat in a basement or other cool area. Some tropical water lilies will bloom all winter if kept in a tub container inside and given at least six hours of bright light. You can also winter them over by removing the tuber from the pot after the foliage has died back from a freeze. Then place the tuber in a container of slightly damp sand or peat moss and store at 50 degrees. In the spring you will need to heat the tuber in an aquarium (or other container with aquarium heater) to about 75 degrees to trigger its growth before moving outside. One choice with tropical plants is simply disposing of them after freezing weather and replacing them in the spring. This way you get to try new plants and colors next season. Many tropical plants can be brought inside and treated as houseplants for the winter. Umbrella Palm, Taros, and Calla Lilies will do very well with medium light levels. If these are in no-hole containers no special care is needed. Otherwise keeping the pots in a tray full of water is needed to keep the plants wet. Water hyacinth and water lettuce require more care than they are worth. It is much easier (and less expensive) to replace them each spring. If you still want to make the effort, they require 10 hours of intense light and water temperatures above 70 degrees. Waterfalls
and Pond Equipment The other option is to turn off pumps and filters for the winter. Cold water holds much more oxygen than warm water and the fish's respiration is slow. Therefore you should not need the circulation and aeration in most areas. The bacteria in your biological filter does not work in cold temperatures, so the reason to run the filter is to keep the bacteria alive. If you turn off the pump and filter for the winter be sure to drain all plumbing. External filters, UV's, and external pumps will need to be drained. Submersible pumps should be left in the pond or in a bucket of water in a warm place to keep the seals from drying out. If you choose this method be sure to clean the filter before starting up in the spring. With the absence of biological filtration, the use of Microbe Lift Autumn Winter Prep becomes even more important. If you choose to run the pump all winter and you have an Aqua Ultraviolet UV sterilizer, it would be advised to remove the lamp, ballast, and quartz sleeve. You can use a Winterizing cap on the UV sterilizer and avoid removing the whole unit from the plumbing. Taking the right precautions before winter can save your fish from undo stress and make for a better environment next season. Links To Products Mentioned In This Article WINTERIZING
YOUR POND POND
& LEAF NETTING PYTHON
SKIMMER NETS KOI
KASTLE POND
CARE SPRING & AUTUMN FOOD MICROBE
LIFT LEGACY COLD WEATHER FISH FOOD Mini-Vac PondoVac
3 MICROBE
LIFT AUTUMN WINTER PREP POND
DEICERS THERMO-CUBE WINTERIZING
CAP =====================================================================
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REGISTRATION PAGE That's it for this issue of The Water Garden News, we hope you found it useful and entertaining. Look for the next issue in March 2007. When you are in the Chattanooga area all of us at The Water Garden would be pleased if you would stop by our new retail center to say hello.
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