lindsayanng
Umm yea... confused
So this is my first winter with my new pond that is fully stocked and planted. I did my research before building it, looked into our zone, and built the pond accordingly based on the HOPE that I can keep my fish in the water.
My pond is about 1500 gallons. There are two basic levels. The center is 3.5feet deep and about 3ft wide by 4ftlong. There is a 2ft deep shelf that goes around the entire perimeter as well, but I am assuming that that area will possibly freeze solid.
I have 6 small goldfish (no more than 3" long) but I also have my pride and joy Koi fish. One is about 9" long butterfly pink fish and the other is about 6" long basic platinum koi. I really want to make sure these guys are 100% safe over winter.
So my questions about the fish are.. When do I stop feeding them? What type of water treatments (if any) need to be done before winter? Do you suggest getting in and doing a complete water change and trying to scoop out any debris that you can? We have some hair algae that I have been trying to get out, but most is tangled into the plants.
So now onto the plants. I have 1 really large and beautiful hardy lily. It is submersed in the deepest area of the pond, but I'm not sure if it should come inside for winter or not. If it SHOULD come inside, does it need grow lights? Or just near a window for some minimal natural sun?
I have 2 dwarf papyrus plants that I would like to try and keep. I am pretty sure I read that those will not survive a frost. So what Do i do with them? Again, is a tank inside the basement near a window ok?
I also have Taros, iris', and some water clover and hyacinths that I would want to try and keep. With the hyacinth, i dont care if i just keep ONE alive because those things COVER!!!!
So as you can see, I am a real newbie, and could use some help...
I plan on adding an airstone, and trying to decide if I should run the fall or not. I might run it at first and see how "frozen" it would get.
My pond is about 1500 gallons. There are two basic levels. The center is 3.5feet deep and about 3ft wide by 4ftlong. There is a 2ft deep shelf that goes around the entire perimeter as well, but I am assuming that that area will possibly freeze solid.
I have 6 small goldfish (no more than 3" long) but I also have my pride and joy Koi fish. One is about 9" long butterfly pink fish and the other is about 6" long basic platinum koi. I really want to make sure these guys are 100% safe over winter.
So my questions about the fish are.. When do I stop feeding them? What type of water treatments (if any) need to be done before winter? Do you suggest getting in and doing a complete water change and trying to scoop out any debris that you can? We have some hair algae that I have been trying to get out, but most is tangled into the plants.
So now onto the plants. I have 1 really large and beautiful hardy lily. It is submersed in the deepest area of the pond, but I'm not sure if it should come inside for winter or not. If it SHOULD come inside, does it need grow lights? Or just near a window for some minimal natural sun?
I have 2 dwarf papyrus plants that I would like to try and keep. I am pretty sure I read that those will not survive a frost. So what Do i do with them? Again, is a tank inside the basement near a window ok?
I also have Taros, iris', and some water clover and hyacinths that I would want to try and keep. With the hyacinth, i dont care if i just keep ONE alive because those things COVER!!!!
So as you can see, I am a real newbie, and could use some help...
I plan on adding an airstone, and trying to decide if I should run the fall or not. I might run it at first and see how "frozen" it would get.