It is such a stunning day today (after a horrible hot & humid spell) , that I just had to share with you all.
My new plant enclosures are doing an extremely good job protecting the lilies and water hyacinth from the voracious koi. I spent some time today actually *dividing* the water hyacinth. IMAGINE! Usually by this time all traces of it would have been eaten. lol!
Beautiful! Sounds like a perfect day!
Thanks, Carolyn!
Really enjoyed your pictures. Rings look like they are really doing a great job at protection of plants. Glad you have such good weather.
Bonnie
So beautiful! They look great now that they're filling up with plants.
How deep is your pond? How large (length and width) Your fish look large, so just wondering.
Great job, keep the pictures coming, we love to see everyone's ideas!
Your koi are gorgeous as is you pond. Really interesting structures to protect you plants. Your koi must eat like parranhea. (sp)
Oberon, that's how my koi eat and that's why I am going to build a ring and try to keep them out of plants.
Had nice floating island but they treated it like it was a diving board and it went down into pond with all the plants and stones in it. Buggers
I like the look of plants in ponds so I am determined to find a way to deter them.
I printed out Corsetiere's instructions and will try it.
Bonnie
Diving Board!!! That cracks me up. lol
That really is a clever and attractive solution to the hungry koi problem. I am going to pass it on to a friend with voracious fish.
Years ago when we had a large pond with koi we also had a nearby lake that was clogged with hydrilla. I would bring it home by the trash bagfuI and feed it to the koi. I know transporting it was probably illegal but they loved it and would slurp it down like spaghetti, one strand at a time. As long as I provided their "greens" they would often yank the lilies out of the pots but they did not eat them. I also tried Purina Fish Chow and found they did as well on that as they did on the pricier koi foods. Excellent color and growth.
Thanks for the compliments, guys!
MerryMary, we calculated the gallons at one point so I know it was over 3000. We do have *very* excellent aeration and great bio filtering (lava rock bags and now the plants), so I think that strongly contributes to the healthy habitat for the koi. The pond is 4 ft deep at the very deepest area, with it going down to about 2 ft at the shallowest. If we ever have to replace the liner, I think I will try to dig it even a bit deeper and perhaps add a bottom drain. I read that koi enjoy the height for diving. So Bonnie, was really pretty accurate with her diving board description! My koi completely upturned an elaborately planted floating island too. Some of the old fired clay planting media is still on the bottom of the pond! It is soooo hard to pick up that stuff in water! Boy, was I mad when that happened. That pot was expensive and now it just sits in my garage. :(
I got some great books last weekend that had another good idea for how to get an island effect without a floating pot. They suggested basically building it out of brick from the pond floor up and putting planting media inside the brick enclosure. I could see how that would be very useful for things like lotuses and irises.
Corsetiere,
How old are your koi? They look pretty good sized.
Have any fish jumped into the rings yet? I'm beginning to think I've got a bunch of acroBRATS.
Figure 20 llbs. ea. jumping into a floating island at the same time and you get the picture.
Capsized.
Ardesia, I'm beginning to think I need a vegie garden just for the koi never mind me. LOL
I think we have had them for going on 3 years. Most of them started out as $6 fish from the pet store except for Tamago, the largest who we splurged on and bought her at a decent mature size for about $30-40. It's a little freaky because the fry that were born in the pond last year are already at least 5-6 inches now. Yikes! They are growing fast!
They have not jumped in the lily enclosures. I think since they extend to the bottom of the pond, they treat them like a true barrier. Thankfully! Although it will be interesting to see what happens when this year's fry are too big to fit in (or out) of the holes in the net of the enclosures. I wonder who will get stuck inside and who will get stuck outside of them! lol!
Bonnie, I tried feeding mine lettuce from my garden but they seemed uninterested. I am going to try floating half an orange on the pond next. I read that they like to pick at cut oranges and it is good for them. :D
You can also see if your grocery store will save the old romaine for you, they love that and spinach too.
I'll get some romaine and spinach. If they won't eat it I will. I'll get fresh stuff.
Corsetiere, slice the oranges about 1/4" thick slices and float them. My koi must be southern cause they like oranges and watermelon. I do make sure no seeds in watermelon cause I don't know if they are good for them or not.
Didn't know the rings extended to bottom of pond. Didn't notice that on your diagram. Did you add a full size round piece at the bottom of ring and anchor it to bottom of pond?
Bonnie
Mine will eat both watermelon slices and romaine....but they also love frozen peas. (I defrost them first)
Corsetiere...how far are you from Dublin? I'm there often, visiting family.
I have limited time, but am hand digging my new pond.....one....scoop...at....a....time....LOL.
Yeah I made 2 different types for my pond. The tutorial shows the floating style for water hyacinth. the construction techniques are the same for the water lilies baskets, they are just circle shaped and deeper rather than donut shape and shallow. :)
Have been trying to dig the pond in small spurts, but the weather has been very tropical as of late. One hour it's 96 and will fry you, and then next hour it's dumping 2 inches of rain and washing everything back into the area you just dug! Sand is harder to dig in. I remember Bonnie having to brace her sides when she did her larger pond. Because we can't get an equipment in the back yard, we're also running out of places to move the dirt! I've gone all along the fence, leveled the yard, filled planter boxes, etc. Not sure where to put it at this point...I don't like the crazy neighbor, maybe I'll dig at night and swing each shovel over the fence ;) (Kidding!)
Maybe a sign out front--free dirt for your plant pots. We have been asked many times for that huge pile in our backyard but of course Charlie won't part with it cause we occasionally have to fill bull holes.
Yesterday we got 3 1/10 inches of rain. Good thing ponds have an overflow and I can just pump some out of pool. Wouldn't it be wonderful if we got enough to bring our lakes back up which would really take a lot.
Happy ponding all.
Bonnie
I'm pretty close to downtown, Mary.
Yeah, I am tempted to dig a second smaller pond just for water lilies to really go wild in. lol
So....this is as far as I've gotten with my hand digging. sloooooow.... :)
The bird statues are standing on what will be a 12 inch deep shelf in the corner....about 3 x 5.
Don't give up M. Mary. You will get it done. Love your birds.
Looks like you have a lot of digging done. GREAT
This hot weather has me inside more than outside. Did a bunch of pruning yesterday cause jungle was getting too thick.
Made rounds to two of Charlie's docs today and one was right near The Yard Stop in Tavares.
Loaded up the back of my SUV and got some beautiful plants. 3 kinds of Ipomoia (potato vine I didn't have. 4 different coleus. 1 cherry colored alamanda. 12 angelonia. 2 cuphea. 1 plant not marked but beautiful foliage. 2 tall sedums. 1 succulent. Will have to plant them early in the day as after 9:30 I'm toasted.
Happy ponding all.
Bonnie D.
Thanks Bonnie....my goal is to have it done by Nov 1. My family comes down from Ohio then. If not, I may bring you plants. I just can't keep them in pots on my deck for much longer. They will start to rot the deck in all of this damp tropical weather.
Do you want me to start coleus for you? I have an assortment, so not sure what colors you don't have. I have the 2 water lilies for you and the purple stemmed taro elephant ear.
MM - you are getting there. Can't wait to see it when you are finished!
Am looking forward to the water lilies. Think they will go into new tiled round tubby I was gifted with. You have enough to do with getting new pond set up. Wait and see if I already have coleus same as you have.
Can always use taro. I have had a lot of the plain green elephant ear popping up all over. Don't know why they are getting all over now but maybe from all the rain.
Worked outside today until 11AM. Came in and got vertigo real bad so I'm not working in the heat again. About 9:30 is all I can stand. Heat index today was 103 over here. Yuk!! Both of our thermometers read 99. I'm already tired of summer. Just glad we are getting all this wonderful rain. Keeps ponds and pool up. Had to pump some out of pool other day as it was too far up past skimmer. Haven't run the sprinkler system but once this summer. Unusual.
Happy ponding.
Bonnie D.
The purple stemmed taro will grow in the water. (any very moist area too) The smaller tropical lily will grow in your koi tiled pond, but will eventually cover the pretty tile bottom. If you just want water in it, in a shady spot, I can bring you some guppies to keep the water clean and let the bottom view show through.
Keep cheering me on Carolyn, like Bonnie said, this heat can do us in very quickly. The humidity is as high as the heat, so you just can't cool off.
MM, guppies good idea. It's really too beautiful to hide.
Also, please be careful working in this extreme heat. It's a killer.
Bonnie
