Country Escape's 2nd pond - Goldfish only

[CountryEscape]

Pretty corn, Colleen! Keep us posted on the colors of the tassels. I've never seen different colored tassels on corn before!
Lou, yes, I have snapping turtles in my farm pond. The big one goes across the road to the neighbor's ditch (their guttering and septic tank drain into the ditch, so there is almost always water in it) to lay her eggs each year. They, sometimes if I'm lucky, I see the babies heading back to my farm pond after hatching. I had two little infants (they were only about 1.5" long) in my skimmer on the koi pond I think it was 2 years ago, but other than that, and the one that I THINK was a small snapper in the koi pond waterfall pool (about 4-5" long), I've not seen any in the backyard ponds.
Check out these bullfrogs. This pic is of a pretty good sized guy between my deck and the koi pond. I stand on the edge of the deck to feed the fish, and this guy has been a regular sitting only 4' away from me.

Then, when I walked around to the goldfish pond to feed, I noticed two more good sized big ones on the rocks close to the first one. There was maybe 3' between the 3 of them! I counted 11 frogs between the two ponds, and that's not counting the ones that were there and I did not see, like in the bogs, in the waterfall and stream, etc. I love that they love my ponds!

 

[j.w]

Not fair CE you have more frogs than you can count

 

[Big Lou]

A down right frog community.

 

[callingcolleen1]

It must rain frogs over there!!

 

[CountryEscape]

Well, it's not been raining much RAIN over here, so maybe that's what is going on! Yeah, I usually have lots of frogs this time of year. Keep in mind, everyone, I have a farm pond that has been there for probably 20 years or more, and the frogs are well established in that pond. So, it's simply an easy hop, skip and a few jumps to get to my back yard ponds. Less crowded than the farm pond, I would presume. Someday when there are lots sitting where I can video tape them, I will do a sweep and show you how many are out there.

 

[Big Lou]

One night when you look out a window and see them lined up on the eve be afraid, very afraid.

Yes CE I know I'm an ass.

 

[callingcolleen1]

ha ha ha, attack of the bull frogs in the middle of the night.... there coming for you CE!!!!

 

[CountryEscape]

Naw ... they are either afraid of me, or very friendly, love to watch me, see if I have any tasty treats for them! I like that some of them are not afraid at all, just like to watch me. It makes up for the ones that jump before I even see them.

 

[Big Lou]

CE, my wife got all over me for my comments to you about your frogs. She said to tell you that she knows your frogs are nice frogs.

 

[CountryEscape]

Haha, Lou, well tell your wife you can comment however you want about my frogs. I know they probably eat things I would not like them to eat, but if I took the time to feed them, they would be super happy frogs! I make them find their own food most of the time. May have to go on a grasshopper hunt this weekend, just to have the fun of tossing them into the ponds and watching the action!
The farmer called and said it would be within the next 10 days they would be spraying the fungicide on the fields around my house with a plane again. This is what I believe caused my massive goldfish loss last summer when I was gone the end of July, beginning of August. So, they will let me know within 48 hours of when the fields will likely be sprayed, and I am going to cover them. Already bought the plastic, and will attach it to the deck, cover the koi pond, and then use electric fence posts to hold it over the goldfish pond and stream. I have to cover the stream, as it feeds the goldfish pond. Reason I think it was the spray is that about a month or two after they sprayed, and after large amount of fish were dead, there was another round of dying fish. I then realized we had a large rain, and the koi pond overflowed ... into the goldfish pond. So figure more chemical got in there again. It appears it didn't bother the koi, only the goldfish. But, one ponder let me know there is a chemical that is used to treat koi, but will kill goldfish, so that was my final deduction. Hopefully this year there will be no deaths!

 

[Big Lou]

Best of luck with the spray. Hope all goes well for your pond, stream and all your little friends.

 

[j.w]

Oh darn the yucky spray time again. Hope the cover works for you CE.

 

[callingcolleen1]

Too bad they could not find a less harmful spray to use. I wish you all the best CE, and stay in the house when they are spraying please...

 

[CountryEscape]

I won't likely be home when they spray, so no worries about that. I think it's neat to see the planes, as they dip really low over the fields. I watched one last week on my way to work. It's funny, but they look so close, but then I saw him criss cross the highway at least 6 times before I got to where he was crossing! I'm a little concerned they are going to call this weekend, and I'll have to get my plastic up before I leave for WI to visit my sisters ... and CometKeith! Guess I'd better get the posts in the ground and the plastic put up before I leave on early Sat. a.m. just in case.
I hate that they have to spray, but around here, if they didn't use chemicals on the crops, there would be no crops. I think genetics are maybe getting better, but maybe getting worse, too. They strive for more yield, and thin cornstalks so the corn will go through the combine easier, then the wind blows it down in a bad fall storm. There is give and take to it all. I just hope I don't lose any more fish, that's all I hope for. It's the same last weekend in July coming up (well, it will be first weekend in August, I guess), that I was gone last year. This year there are beans in the fields, last year it was corn. I hate to put up the plastic, and then have it torn to shreds before they spray, but since I will be gone Sat. a.m. until Tues. afternoon, guess I'd better be pro-active. Ho hum ....

 

[Big Lou]

Hope all turns out okay.