Is your pond ready for spring?

By Dayleen Van Ryswyk aka “The Koi Lady”

(Originally printed in Gardens West Magazine Spring 2007)

It’s that time of the year when the warmer days of spring lure you out into the garden to get things tidied up for the new season. Unfortunately, some people get a little over enthusiastic when it comes to getting the pond ready. Unlike the garden that can do with a really good spring overhaul, the pond needs to be treated a little kinder and more gently.

The fish are just starting to emerge from their winter rest and more than ever they need to have as little stress as possible. During the winter, the fish’s immune system is very slow and weak due to the cold and they are more vulnerable to stress, bacteria and parasites. Resist the urge to remove the fish from the pond to drain and clean it. Instead, get your filtration all hooked up and running but don’t have your pump suck from the bottom of the pond just yet. The reason being, you don’t want to start churning up the warmer water at the bottom where the fish are laying. Equally, you wouldn’t want to run a really big waterfall yet because it would create too strong a current in the pond. If the fish have to fight to stay warm and upright, then they will be weaker and less able to fight off disease.

Your Koi and Goldfish are probably coming to the surface now looking for food. Since they probably haven’t eaten in a few months and their digestive enzymes are still somewhat dormant, you should go easy on feeding. A good cold-water food to start with in the spring is wheat germ pellets. They are basically a regular pellet food but with higher amounts of wheat germ and carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are easier for your fish to digest in the cold water than a high protein food is. Start out slow with small amounts every other day until your water is over 55 degrees. Once your water is over 65 degrees you can start adding a higher protein food to their diet.

Once you start feeding your fish, you should check your PH, Ammonia and Nitrites on a regular basis. Since the water is cold, the good bacteria that keeps your water healthy is dormant as well. Once the water gets over about 55 degrees the good bacteria will start to colonize but it takes time. Approximately 4-6 weeks until your filtration is running at peak performance. I don’t advocate ever draining your pond completely and power washing it. One, that’s a pretty drastic thing to do and 2, the chlorinated water will sterilize all the good bacteria your pond needs to be healthy and the water clear. In a properly filtered pond, you should never have to drain and clean it. Just a small water change and vacuum of the pond bottom should be enough. A regular addition of a sludge remover product would help keep the pond cleaner and also help your filtration to be more efficient.

Here’s a good spring check list

1)      Once the pond water is over 45-50 degrees get the filtration running.

2)      Don’t let your pump suck from the bottom until your water is at least 55-60 degrees.

3)      Vacuum the pond bottom but no drastic water changes please.

4)      Feed a good quality wheat germ pellet (or Manda Fu) between 50 and 65 degrees water temperature.

5)      Check your water parameters on a regular basis. Have test kits and use them.

6)      Add a sludge remover product to help digest any unremoved debris in the pond. Something such as Tetras Aquazyme or Microbe Lift PL spring and summer or Sludge Away to mention a few.

7)      Re-pot over grown plants and start feeding your water lilies their fertilizer tabs.

Just a reminder; the fish predators are active again. If you have small fish you may want to add bird netting over your pond to keep the Heron’s and Kingfishers out. Raccoons can be stopped with straight sides on your pond, dropping to a water depth of 3 feet.

HAPPY PONDING!!