the POND GIRL

You can call me Algae

noreply@blogger.com (the Pond Girl) — Tue, 22 May 2012 01:02:00 +0000

It's very easy being green in 2012.

Pond lovers in Canada, and specifically Ontario, started enjoying summer-like temperatures in March. As my 13 year old would say, "I know, right??" Great for getting outside and enjoying (almost) all that mother nature has to offer.

Except, it's been a perfect storm for algae. A great year for Kermit, it is very easy being green in the pond this season. The above-seasonal temperatures have the green stuff bloomin' all over the place.

'Sticks to Rocks' algae aka Planktonic

Last year, I did it my way--chemical free. The ecosystem balance was perfection. My 5th summer out there and not a plastic bottle in sight. I am paying dearly for that this year. I pulled; shaded; drained and topped up; and the floating plants were in early! And yet, ugh. Not just the regular string algae this year. But floating masses of gunk AND green water to boot. It's nasty to look at, but also harmful to fish as it depletes your pond of precious oxygen. A green pond means your ecosystem is out of whack. Time to get it back in balance.

Pond lovers: here's the scoop on algae.

String: "filamentous". You'll recognize it because it's, um, stringy. It can grow 2ft in a day. Best strategy? Yank it out. Often. I bought a spaghetti scoop from the dollar store and I find it terrific for extending my reach down into the deeper sections of the pond. A product called eco-blast can be sprinkled onto the strings but yanking is just as effective. You must be very diligent! I find it rather soothing. Weird, I know.
Green water. "planktonic". Easy to spot because you won't be able to see anything else in the pond. It floats around and sticks to everything. Too much and it even starts to muck up the surface of the water. Your best defense against this is a UV light. Either in-line with your filter intake, or built-in to the filter itself, the UV blasts those blooms into smithereens. Make sure you get the dead stuff out of the bottom -- use a net; and, treat with sludge remover. More on that in another post.

One final word: plants. Algae competes with real plants for resources. The more plants you have, the worse off the algae have it. Buy early, buy often. Here in the true north strong and free, we have to wait for the best plants to grow in the ditches of Florida (yes, really) where they get harvested and shipped up to us for a tidy profit. Luckily, it seems the entire continent is warming up early this year so the plants arrived at the local pond shop early. Now, we wait.

Meanwhile. With apologies to Mother Nature, I had to dose the pond with the liquid algae treatment (contains copper) AND the eco-blast -- which really doesn't sound very eco to me, but, works like a charm on the stringy stuff. The liquid treatment works on the other types. With fingers and spaghetti scooper crossed, we hope this is the last of the algae for this season. Sorry Kermit: no more green. Too easy.

So two years goes by...

noreply@blogger.com (the Pond Girl) — Mon, 21 May 2012 23:17:00 +0000

Inspired by former schoolmate and blogger ninabeast, I am firing up the pond blog. Chickens, fish....aren't they both related to dinosaurs or something?

So here we are in 2012. May, to be precise. And, it's the May 2-4 weekend! So much has happened, but really: you don't care about that. WHAT is up with the pond?!

Tomorrow pictures will arrive.

It's busy out there, and I have much to share with you my pond friends! Think about this: algae. There will be test.

Hose Froze

noreply@blogger.com (the Pond Girl) — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 19:54:00 +0000

I did the last 25% water change today. Almost. I dropped the large pond by 6", then when I went to refill it.....found the hose had frozen solid. Duh. Glad I didn't explode the water tap. Would not have surprised me actually. Things happen to me.

Little frosty this morning @ -10C. Nothing else froze over, but the spray from the waterfall made for some interesting sculpture this afternoon.

While the sun was out I took a peek at some of the water iris. I divided up a huge one last year -- and these are the random pieces I ~~shoved~~ planted in a pot. I'm very happy to see that I didn't kill them, and they're actually sprouting.

And on the unhappy side, look at these little guys. They were so happy with +10 yesterday...and so unhappy with today's drop.

Warm, cold, cold, warm

noreply@blogger.com (the Pond Girl) — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 23:37:00 +0000

The weather will not make up its mind this year! It's been snowing (lightly) over the last two days, and yet today: 14C!

No pictures today, but I did take a half hour to scoop some crud (scientific term for pond sludge) from the bottom of both ponds. After the water changes, I can see the bottoms quite well (pond bottoms, people!) so am able to aim the scooper and de-sludge. I also did the 3rd of the 4 25%water changes in the large pond.

Since the smaller pond is pretty much cleared out, I treated it with 'sludge reducer' -- to get the good bacteria in there working on keeping everything clear.

Since the lower pond water was so clear today (sunshine helps!) I was able to count fish. 22! And, some pinky-finger sized babies! Looks like Captain Jack has had another busy winter.

Naughty boy.

Snow?

noreply@blogger.com (the Pond Girl) — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 16:08:00 +0000

Just like removing the winter tires too early, hooking up the waterfall in March is a sure fire way to get it to snow. Not too much, just enough to make it too cold for the ever-so-pampered pond girl to venture out and numb the fingers. Nevermind the fact that the pond water is sitting at a bone chilling 36F.

The fish have dropped back down for a short nap, which sounds like a great idea to me. Best to rest up now until the real pond fun begins.

the Pond Girl will not be stopped

noreply@blogger.com (the Pond Girl) — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 14:13:00 +0000

Yours truly has been spending all this gorgeous March weather inside due to infectious disease. So it had to be really warm out before this pond girl was going to head outside and get things fired up. When the outside temperature hit 20C, and the pond girl's temperature dropped below 99F, it was time for some fresh air and relatively easy pond start-up activities. The meticulous cleaning and storing of the pond equipment certainly paid off. Yes, I know my way around a pump housing, and the tools required to re-assemble it. Having it all ready to go was a real time saver.

Good thing I also stored the manual in there: I forgot that the centre screw is reverse direction. So much for righty-tighty, lefty-loosey. I know tools, and I like to get messy, but I'm still a girl and can say 'righty-tighty' if I want to.

Plugged it in, dropped it down, then drained 25% of the over-winter water. A piece of old eavestroughing works well to get the water where it's needed. And away from anyone with a sense of smell. Mine's not working yet, which at pond start up, is a blessing.

Topped it back up and will continue the 25% water changes over the course of the next 3 days.

Final task was to remove (and store properly!) the rock heater that keeps a hole in the ice over the winter to let any accumulated gases escape. It hangs from the 2x4...also now removed.

Enough for day one. As usual, I overdid it and am exhausted. Too much, too soon. But hoping this weather holds until I'm at full recovery. Don't know about you, but when the temp heats up, I'm outside until November. I have no time, or clearly--patience--for illness!

Another year gone by...

noreply@blogger.com (the Pond Girl) — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 23:14:00 +0000

Apparently the Pond Girl has had a busy year! No updates since last April? No excuses -- just explanations. The pond girl went back to her 'real job' and thus time at the computer trickled away like the water in my waterfall.

Now that I'm settled back in (somewhat anyway) I thought I'd take another crack at keeping my pond adventures up-to-date and online!

We begin mid-march. The 15th, actually. And while the ice in the lower pond has been melted for awhile now, the upper pond is just now breaking up.

It's amazing, really, once you get your priorities in order what you an accomplish. With my new headset, I was able to listen in to a conference call AND snap a few early morning pictures at the same time.

It's spring break now, and the weather is way ahead of schedule. I think the pond might get opened a little bit earlier this year!

Guilty

noreply@blogger.com (the Pond Girl) — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 19:26:00 +0000

So much for au natural.

I just dumped in some algae killer. *sigh* It's like being on a diet: You can only go so long before you eat the entire container of m&m peanuts. I waited and waited, then caved in with the miracle blue fluid. I also did eat the m&ms. But I digress.

Good news though. The weather is so nice that the pond plants are really coming along so the natural algae killing should begin soon!

The connected pond

noreply@blogger.com (the Pond Girl) — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 22:51:00 +0000

My cell phone just dropped out of my jacket pocket and fell into the lily pot in the pond.

It is now drying over a vent. I knew that maintaining a pond was expensive, but I did not factor in the cost of new technology.

The pretty side

noreply@blogger.com (the Pond Girl) — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 16:48:00 +0000

Look closely -- there's a blue jay having a bath.

High of 27 today! Crazy weather for April! I was out with the pond even before breakfast this morning. Just checking up on a few things. Like this Blue Jay having a morning bath.

Pulled some string algae that had accumulated in the intake mesh of the pump. Then mostly just watched the fish. Fiddled with the rocks in the upper waterfall to make it sound 'prettier'. I know. I know.

The ugly side

noreply@blogger.com (the Pond Girl) — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 00:22:00 +0000

Welcome to Gross Street.

I promised to share with you the beauty and the blech: today, the blech.

It is vitally important to ensure the bottom of the pond is as free from sludge as possible. The gases from the decomposing material will eventually choke your fish. Yikes! So you have to get in there and scoop. I use a fish net; some use a pond vacuum. Just make sure you get it done. Once completed, you can use a commercially available sludge-remover to help jump-start the process of breaking down the rest. I took the sludge (yup, that pile of muck in the picture above) and dug it into my garden as a cheap, yet smelly, fertilizer. I'm sure I heard my perennials thanking me.

Now. How to deal with the algae that accumulated under the ice over the winter. I hand pulled as much as I could and have my green-stained fingers crossed that the UV light will take care of the rest. I do have some algaecide in case it's very stubborn, but I don't like to stress the fish so shall leave it for a bit. We all know that the best solution for algae is PLANTS! But, it's only April, and new oxygenators etc. are not yet available. When the water level was dropped down, I stuffed my lily pots with fertilizer tabs to get them growing as quickly as possible.

I took the water down 25%, and filled it back up with treated tap water. The pond water, of course, I diverted onto the garden.

It's a busy time of year!

I can see clearly now...

noreply@blogger.com (the Pond Girl) — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 22:13:00 +0000

..the rain is gone! Out my office window, I can actually see the edge of the current cold front leaving the area. As you can see by this forecast, it's leaving ahead of schedule. Tomorrow I'll get that first water change done.

Have I mentioned that I am a "sunny weather Pond Girl"?

I don't want to jinx anything by saying this, but the water is clear! Some algae clinging to the sides up top but other than that, not a bad start!

Now the guessing begins. Is it luck? The pump? (I should mention my new pump {2008} is able to handle solids. I am in love with this pump.) It could be the new bulb in the clarifier...

Do you have this problem? I change too many things at once then never really know what actually solved it. I shall just check off the lucky box and be grateful.

Rainy days and Mondays

noreply@blogger.com (the Pond Girl) — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 15:48:00 +0000

Or rather, it's a rainy day, and it's Monday. But always lots to think about pondwise. The bulbs are beginning to bloom and I can see them nicely without going outside. It's lovely that a pond can give such pleasure rain or shine; indoors, or out.

I'll be inside today. But I did venture out to give the fish some breakfast. Yup, now that the bio filter is chugging away, and the water temperature has risen above the requisite 39F, they are quite happy to chomp down a 1/2 handful of spring food twice daily. In summer during major growth periods they'll eat 4 times that much.

Got the rain barrel filling today: fantastic! because next up for the pond is the first of 4 25% water changes. I prefer to use the rainbarrel water to refill it. No water treatment required, and no cost!

A few surprises

noreply@blogger.com (the Pond Girl) — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 23:10:00 +0000

The larger, lower pond is up and running today. It's funny: even after having owned this pond for a few years now, each spring I forget exactly where in the garden the bio-filter sits. It sits in the garage during the winter; that's easy enough. Then I haul it out to the garden....and put it.....um....at the back...on one of the many patio slabs back there.

This year I picked the wrong slab. I will move it tomorrow.

Meanwhile, I was able to connect everything without a lot of fuss. I changed the UV bulb and had handy husband install it inline as per directions (remember: it goes between the pump and the filter). The UV light didn't do much for the algae last year. I think this was due to an old bulb. This new bulb I bought on sale...so we'll have to wait and see. $45 for a bulb. Seems high. But factor in the costs of removing algae using other means and it's a steal.

Now for the surprise.

We thought we had one Koi: Captain Jack Sparrow. Well. It seems that before Goldie (RIP) left us, they honeymooned amongst the lilies (ahh. such romance) and we have some small KOI. Not goldfish; Koi!

For you learners out there with an abundance of 'are they or aren't they'--here's how to tell the difference.

Koi have visible whiskers; goldfish do not.

(Photo from wikipedia.org)

Lido deck and spa

noreply@blogger.com (the Pond Girl) — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 14:51:00 +0000

So called because of the number of birds that drop by for bathing and lounging. Yesterday I cleaned out 3 years worth of their sludge from this upper deck. It's now a sparkling oasis in which our feathered friends may frolic. No, I don't usually speak like that. You can see the new granite/quartz rock to soften the splash.

In this last picture you get a wee glimpse of the middle pond. It's about 450 gallons. I usually add some feeder goldfish and a few handfuls of minnows to keep any mosquitoes at bay. They are great entertainment for the resident 10yr old to catch. The minnows, not the mossies.

Must head out into this beautiful mid-teen weather and get the large pond fired up.

Opening up

noreply@blogger.com (the Pond Girl) — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 21:48:00 +0000

The crocuses (crocii?) are up; time to open the upper pond.

This is the 3rd spring for our pond, and the uppermost part, under the top waterfall, has never been properly cleaned out. It has now. I heard the neighbours faint from the smell. Even the dog turned up her nose.

I took out every rock; every pebble; left no stone unturned. For a shallow pool, it took a surprisingly long time. And it was worth it. It looks so much better! We have a stash of rocks our front of the house picked up by my daughter on various vacations and summer trips. I found just the right piece of granite--heavy on the quartz-- to sit under the waterfall to better divert the flow. Now it sounds all rushing and trickily..and not so much like a garden hose.

Tomorrow, the lower pond. I'll distribute clothes pins to the neighbours, and keep the dog inside.