fish eating lilies ?

[HARO]

Rivermist; Are you sure it's the fish doing the damage? This is the time of year when insects seem to do the most harm to waterlily leaves. I've kept goldfish with plants for years and never had a problem. Sounds to me like the fish are picking at whatever is doing the REAL damage.
John

 

[Shoestring Ponder]

Haro,

Good thought! My lilly's were beautiful and blossoming in the beginning of April and now they are looking ratty...at least some of them do. It could be insects! Hopefully the fish are picking off the insects!

:goldfish:

 

[Rivermist]

Yes I'm sure. I've watched them go nuts and play... then rush on the plants grab a bite and pull them away... they don't even eat it they just pull. I thought that there were parasites under the leaves but there was nothing. Gonna bring a leaf to the store this week end to see if I'm missing something...

 

[Rivermist]

Hey, I up this topic.

I got the food for my fish.

but they seem to be hungry all the time ! lol

How often should I feed them (18 goldfish).

I got a koi and goldfish food, the tetra pond koi vibrance sticks... how many per fish should I consider giving ? Until now I've been very generous with the distribution and feeding twice daily (otherwise they go for the new plants ), but I don't know that it's a good thing to overfeed them...

Any advice is welcome

 

[addy1]

lol I feed mine every 2-3 days or less. You can feed them what they will eat in 5 minutes or less. Overfeeding makes more poop, more nutrients, possible algae and green water. If they don't eat all the food it will rot, dissolve etc on the bottom, more food for algae etc.

 

[Rivermist]

Thx, so far they eat like pigs... because the sticks are a little big they wait a little so that they get softer but everything disappears. I really don't know... i know it should be every 2-3 days, but when I try to space it (and even at the beginning) if they get hungry they go back destroy the plants... bad fish ! lol

I think I give two handful of sticks twice a day.

I know it s a lot but it's that or my plants... :s

 

[addy1]

laughing yep bad fish, mine leave the plants alone, or I have enough I don't notice fish nibbles. I do see them eating off the sides of the pond, constantly nibbling.

 

[Rivermist]

my lilies are in terrible shape, they even dug them out there was nothing left but roots, and now they are starting making new leaves again (in an isolated container until they are big enough).

got those floating Hyacinths, Iris and cattail with some bottom plants... drives me nuts to find pieces of plants floating here and there lol

 

[koiguy1969]

WHAT, CARNIVOROUS LILLIES? i didnt know they existed....how many fish did they eat? OH WAIT! I'M SORRY...LOL...HEHEHEHEHEHE!

 

[Rivermist]

LOOOOOL I know... for sure :


theres something fishy going on here!

 

[buckry]

I haven't experienced any damage yet, but I've seen some of my larger koi (5") swim right up to a lily pad under water and try to take a bite out of it. It looks like they are trying to chew it, they munch a couple of times then swim off. There are no bite marks on the leaves after this, but I figure in the next year or so they will probably be able to inflict real damage.

 

[sissy]

They are bored and want something to play with .I have christmas ornaments in my pond for my fish ,the big plastic ones .I did find in the dollar store small plastic balls that glow in the dark and the fish love to push them around .There were 2 in the bag for a dollar and the size of a baseball .

 

[j.w]

Sissy you spoil those fish something awful,lol!

 

[Rivermist]

I saw sissy it's really cool idea.... but how come they were not bored before the water was cleaned ? maybe they had no clue about their environment and now that they see the actual limits they are bored. Will try to get them stuff cos definitely feeding them does not change things... they go play in the roots of my hyacinth and start pulling them apart _O_ yesterday I caught one doing I don't know what with the iris !

and they are just little goldfish ! lol

buckry good thing you have no damage so far...

 

[buckry]

Are your hyacinths not spreadig like crazy? I posted this in another forum, but I don't see what the big deal is. I have so many tiny baby hyacinths that I ran out of baskets. I'm not letting the larger ones float free and I'm protecting the babies in baskets. I have a feeling the fish could never destroy them as fast as they grow so I say let them have their fun. The pond is just as much theirs as it is mine after all.