Summer Algae Control Tips:
We find that during the Summer months algae can get out of control quickly usually because of the heat and sun. Algae generally is not a reason for concern since most of the time it is not harmful to your fish - it usually bothers us more than them! A few things to keep in mind when deciding when and how to treat algae:
For suggestions on specific products to use to treat your algae ask one of our sales staff.
We can't believe Fall has come upon us already. We love the leaves changing, tastes of pumpkin & apple and the smell of Autumn but hate the thought of having to close the pond!
Here are a few tips to make closing your pond easier:
1. Use water gardening gloves: the water temperatures are not always conducive to pulling out the pump, cleaning out the algae and cutting back the plants but wearing pond gloves helps keep your hands/arms warm and clean.
2. Maintain your bacteria: Keeping up with bacteria throughout the season will help reduce the amount of sludge build up at the bottom of your pond which will help for an easier closing process.
3. Remove all the debris you can: Using a Pond Shark with a deep net and double sided opening will allow you to scoop out the leaves and debris at the bottom of the pond while the rake will help pull off any dead leaves. Rent one of our pond vacuums to clean the pond fully before shutting it down for the winter. Any sludge or debris that is left at the bottom of the pond will decompose and become toxic to the fish. In Central New York, we have a Pond Service Technician we can send out to your home with our stainless steel professional vacuum to clean out your pond of debris.
4. Cover your pond before the leaves begin to fall: Pond netting is great for keeping leaves and debris from falling into the pond. We can custom cut the length for you and offer different widths that will surely cover your pond. Also, don't forget your stream! If you are concerned about bending plants with a leaf net we do offer a dome leaf net by Atlantic Water Gardens.
Last year was a very stressful year when it came to keeping fish in our pond. We had two predators visit that we've never seen before at our pond. One of them was a mink that showed up the day after Thanksgiving. Thankfully, the pond wasn't frozen over yet and I noticed that several of our large koi were missing. It's hard not to notice when missing several two and a half foot colorful fish. We did find one of them half eaten underneath our artificial rock that houses our pump so we knew it was something that was carrying them out of the pond. The only reason we thought it might be a mink is because we had spotted it the day before in our swimming pool. We knew if we didn't get the mink away from our pond he would continue coming back until he had wiped out all of our fish. Even if the pond had frozen over the mink would've found his way in through the hole in the ice so it's actually fortunate that it hadn't frozen over otherwise I would not have known until spring that the mink had been attacking our fish. Don't be fooled into thinking if your pond freezes over it will stop them from hunting your fish. Another thing we learned is that minks will travel miles in search of food so their hunting territory is large. We learned this from a trapper after a friend of ours suggested calling him to get rid of the mink. He set the trap and within two weeks he got him and as you can imagine he turned out to be a very well fed mink. That was our late fall visiting predator.
Even though it doesn't feel like spring it hasn't stopped the other of our predators from coming back to town. Herons have been spotted in the area again and will be scoping out their territory looking for sources of food. Unfortunately, I had my first encounter with a heron attacking my fish last year. That's pretty good since I've had my pond for about 20 years. However, it didn't make me feel any better as I looked out my window and spotted something orange on the patio next to my pond. I was completely upset and shocked to see one of my favorite Koi lying there. The heron must have been scared away and dropped the koi because except for one puncture wound it was intact. Until I could come up with a better solution, I immediately covered my pond with netting making sure that it was not lying directly on the pond so the heron could not get his long beak through the net. The next morning after coming back from my morning walk, I spotted the Heron sitting on my roof eyeing the pond. As soon as it saw me it immediately flew away and that happened several more times. He would show up early in the morning to go fishing. Fortunately, after a couple of weeks the Heron must have gotten frustrated or found another fishing hole.
What are some of the others things we could have done to prevent the Heron from attacking? We could have used a Scarecrow that is activated by movement or placed a floating alligator head on the pond. Beware of pond predators and don't think they'll give up after one fishing expedition.
Fish have the weakest immune systems in the Fall and Spring so before closing the pond for the winter we would suggest monitoring the fish for any signs they may be sick and to take preventive measure to ensure they do not get sick.
Signs your fish may be sick: If you see your fish flashing, rubbing, see red sores (ulcers), or notice they are much less active than normal.
Treating sick fish: We would suggest treating for parasites and bacterial infections if your fish are exhibiting any of the signs listed above. There are an abundance of products on the market to treat your fish and we have a few favorites. Only one treatment should be done in a pond at a time so we recommend treating for parasites first. Most of the time when fish have signs of a bacterial infection it is because there is a parasite present. To treat all types of parasites would suggest Paracide Green. The treatment would entail 2-3 doses over a 7-14 day period depending on the severity of the fish. For bacterial infections we always recommend Medi-Koi, a medicated fish food. Feed your fish Medi-Koi exclusively for 10-14 days.
If your fish are not showing signs of being sick it does not mean you should take no action but rather treat with medications that will prevent them from becoming sick. Our favorite products for prevention are: Pimafix (Fungus), Melafix (Bacterial) and AquaPrazi (Flukes). Flukes are one of the most common parasites found in a water garden and they can often be compared to fleas on a dog or cat, always present but do not take control unless the immune system has been compromised.
