Hello

[mwpond]

Hello:
We put in our first pond last year. It is a 55 gal pond in our front yard. It has 3 tiers and ran beautifully all summer. We got a few fish for it and had some plants in it. We also had some snails in the pond. As the summer went on we lost all our snails.. not sure why and we gained a frog. As we lost the snails we also gained a lot of green algae. This year I hope to prevent this from happening. I used a chemical to get rid of the algae last fall now it is all white and stringy on the rocks. I think I am going to have to scrub all the rocks by hand to get it off this spring.

I am glad to find this site. It is nice to see what others are doing with their ponds. Happy Spring everyone!

 

[blessedfamily]

Welcome...and good luck getting help with your pond.

 

[DrDave]

Welcome to the Forum!

 

[addy1]

Welcome,
Barley straw helps with algae.

Glad you joined

 

[sissy]

welcome mwpond and we are harmless, well some of us are harmless lol

 

[mwpond]

Thanks everyone! I'll keep you posted on how things go with my pond!

 

[j.w]

mwpond
Hope we can help you w/ your pondering :lol:

 

[CometKeith]

Hi mwpond. Welcome and glad you joined us! My two cents. You can control the algae naturally by adding floating plants. They will block the sun that causes the algae to grow and also will compete for the same nutrients that algae needs to grow. My pond was totally cleared of snails last summer and I have only the night prowlers to blame; those pesky raccoons! They can't catch the fish, but have a feast on the snails especially the trap door kind.

 

[addy1]

I see raccoon prints around my pond all the time, had one huge sucker come up on the deck raiding the feeder. Didn't think of them eating the snails, but my pond is deep hopefully the little snails are smart enough to stay deep.

 

[CometKeith]

I guess my snails weren't too smart. Last summer we had a whole family of raccoons visiting on a nightly basis. You could always tell they were there because they made a mess with some of the plants. This year I am going to buy smart snails even if they cost a little more!

 

[sissy]

smart snails must cost more lol

 

[addy1]

I guess my snails weren't too smart. Last summer we had a whole family of raccoons visiting on a nightly basis. You could always tell they were there because they made a mess with some of the plants. This year I am going to buy smart snails even if they cost a little more!

Ask for an iq test before you pick them up, make sure they are smart enough!

 

[sissy]

I guess they take the test in writing but use snail slime to write with .I have to remember when I get my snails .I'm sure I will really get a strange look but what the heck lol

 

[beetgreens]

One morning I went out and found the lily pots awry and the floating thermometer out of the water and set on one of the pondside rocks. I wondered what the heck my husband (who has absolutely no interest in anything outdoors related) could have been doing fiddling with the pond and thermometer. When I asked, he looked clueless. The dogs and cats couldn't be responsible... only something with little hands with thumbs could have done it. Raccoon!!

 

[mwpond]

Thanks everyone! My husband thought the raccoons got our snails but I wasn't too sure. They sure are pesky little things!
Cometkeith I am going to try the floating plants this year. Our pond is not that big but I think one or two might help!