Spring Maintenance
With the arrival of spring, it's time for some pond maintenance. The fish are more active, the plants are waking from their winter hibernation and the blanketweed will soon start to appear. So, as we spend more time outdoors in the better spring weather, we realise that there are things to do.
If you haven’t already done so, clear away any of last year’s dead growth from the plants, being careful not to damage this year’s growth and flowers. Remove any winter netting so that the emerging plants don’t get trapped, but ensure that you have sufficient defence against the heron and other predators. Also ensure that if you have a pump in your pond, it has been thoroughly cleaned. The filtration box/system will need to be cleaned as well. Please DO NOT use tap water to clean out the filter as it will kill the beneficial life in the filter which helps to balance your pond throughout the season. Use pond or rain water for cleaning as it is chlorine free. Keep the pump and filter running 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. This will ensure a continuous flow of water to the filter and keep all the good bacteria alive. It will also help to keep ice at bay if there is cold weather. If you just have a pump, you can switch it on and off periodically during the spring as oxygen is in good supply when the water is cold, but during summer leave it on night and day to ensure sufficient oxygen supply to the aquatic life within your pond.
Once the water temperature reaches a steady 8°C / 47°F you can start to feed a summer fish food. Before then, a lower protein / wheatgerm food is advisable as it is easier for the fish to digest. Make sure that feeding carried out at this time of year is done carefully, as excess waste in the pond such as uneaten food, excessive leaf litter and large amounts of frog spawn can lead to an algae bloom in the early season and this can affect the clarity and quality of the water all year. So, any action taken now will benefit your pond throughout the season ahead.
We have many years’ experience of dealing with all the aspects of pond maintenance, from cleaning and planting to a complete re-line and enlargement. We like to think that we can answer any query you may have, so if you have a problem with your pond, give us a try; we’re here to help.
Autumn Maintenance
As the daylight hours begin to shorten and summer turns to autumn, there are some seasonal jobs that need to be done around the pond to prepare it for the onset of winter. Plants, fish and equipment all have their own separate requirements and it’s best to get these jobs done prior to the onset of the bad weather.
After the lush growth of the summer, the pond plants will be starting to die back preparing themselves for winter. As soon as this begins, start to remove their dead and dying leaves. This will greatly reduce the amount organic material collecting in the pond and then decaying in the water. This is an important factor for large and small ponds alike. The reduction in organic leaf litter will help to reduce next year’s algae growth. So, for your pond’s sake, don’t overlook the seasonal pruning.
For the same reason, any leaves falling into the pond should be removed. It might be an idea to install a fine net over the surface of the pond, this will ensure that the majority of the falling leaves are kept out. When installing a net, it is best to raise it off the surface of the pond, so that the leaves that fall upon it are then blown off again rather than getting soggy and rotting through the submerged net. We can set up stressed wires and temporary / permanent nets and net frames if this is what you would like. A large majority of leaves enter by being blown in at ground level, so make sure all sides of the net are either pegged or weighted down to prevent this.
As the water temperature starts to drop, the fish in the pond will start to slow down. This is because they are cold blooded; this means that their metabolic rate slows and that they require fewer calories to subsist. It is recommended to begin feeding a low protein feed mixed in with the remaining summer food 50%-50% (this allows an easier transition to the winter food) until the water drops below 8°C. At this point, it is suggested that only low protein food should be fed. During the colder months, operate a “Feed-to-Need” assessment of your fish’s hunger.
If the fish are swimming near the top of the water or mid water, drop a small amount of food on the surface of the pond. If the fish are interested in feeding, they will rise and consume the food. If they are not, there will only be a small amount of food to be removed from the pond if it is uneaten. If they do eat the food, apply a little more until they have had enough. If there is cold weather on its way keep the feeding light so that the fish have time to purge their systems prior to the water temperature dropping.
One of the biggest killers of fish in the autumn/winter time is over feeding. If uneaten food drops to the bottom unseen, and the pond then freezes, this can lead to fatal water quality issues. Always remove uneaten food after 20 minutes. The fish are clearly not interested at this time.
As the pond slows down, the pumps and filters that have helped to keep the pond balanced and healthy throughout the spring and summer, are still working hard. They are picking up organic matter from rotting vegetation and stray leaves that have got into the pond. It is therefore important not to turn off the pond’s filtration equipment as this can cause many problems. You may want to slow the flow of some systems either via pump switches or valves and it might even be prudent to by-pass waterfalls. This reduces the chilling effect of the cold air upon the water. Another good measure would be to raise the pump up in the pond to about 6” (150mm) below the surface. This will allow the fish to reside in the bottom of the pond over the colder months where the warmer water settles.
Do keep an eye on the pump though, as you would not want the pump to dry out or get clogged with debris. This is an excellent time to give the pump a thorough clean, inside and out. It is also worthwhile totally cleaning out your filtration system in readiness for the extra debris accumulated during the cold months. Please DO NOT use tap water to clean the filter as it will kill the beneficial life in the filter which helps to balance your pond throughout the season. Use only pond or rain water for cleaning as it is chlorine free. Get right into the filter and give it a thorough clean out right to the bottom. This should just about see the filter through the worst of the Autumn/winter. But if it needs doing again later...
Another issue with turning the filtration system off is that the water left inside the clarifiers and filters will expand when frozen and crack either the casing and or the delicate quartz sleeve. This can be fatal to some incorporated systems and means that the whole system will need to be replaced due to the inability of repair, leading to great expense! Most modern pumps and filters are very cost effective to run and it is therefore a false economy to switch them off over the cold months.
Another good reason for leaving pumps and filters running during the Autumn/winter is to keep the pond from completely freezing over. The moving water and the low-level heat generated by the working pump will help to prevent a total freezing up of the pond’s surface. As long as the water is not disturbing the fish and measures have been taken as described above, the pond equipment will happily run all winter with little intervention. No need to worry about breaking the ice or having to risk life or broken limb on frosty mornings out in the icy garden, happy in the knowledge that the pump is still running.
The final major autumn job is to check the water quality; an accumulation of nitrates can encourage an early algal bloom in the spring. If this is found to be the case or if other levels of water quality are of concern, a partial water change 25-33% should be carried out and topped back up with tap water and a suitable de-chlorinator. If you have got all of this done before the water’s temp drops to below 8°C, it is a wise precaution to add a blanket weed treatment now. Unless you have no blanket weed that is. This will ensure a smooth blanketweed free start to the following year’s season.
For any gardener, autumn is a strange time, standing between the fading glories of one growing season and the promise of the next. The water gardener is no different in this respect. There is always a slight tinge of sadness to shutting down the pond, but if we use this time wisely to carry out a little maintenance, we can be sure that come next spring, our water feature will get the best chance to shine once more.
Winter Maintenance
As the hours of daylight are short and the temperatures are low, there only a few jobs that need to be done around the pond during these colder months of winter. Plants and fish are in a state of suspended animation, but the equipment still requires some attention as this should still be running all day, every day. So, it’s best to get these jobs done during the brightest days to make the task as pleasant as possible.
The first task is to regularly check that the pump is running and clear of any debris. As previously mentioned in “Autumn” you may want to also slow the flow of some systems, either via pump switches or valves, and it might even be prudent to by-pass waterfalls. This reduces the chilling effect of the cold air upon the water. Another good measure would be to raise the pump up in the pond to about 6” (150mm) below the surface. This will allow the fish to reside in the bottom of the pond over the colder months where the warmer water settles. Do keep an eye on the pump though, as you would not want the pump to dry out or get clogged with leaves etc. This is also an excellent time to give the pump a thorough clean, inside and out.
Next is to remove any leaves that have fallen onto the surface of your pond. Don’t dig around in the pond trying to remove them now; this will disturb the pond and its hibernating inhabitants. If you have a net covering the surface of the pond regularly check it and remove any build-up of leaves from on or around it. When installing a net, it is best to raise it off the surface of the pond, so that the leaves that fall upon it are then blown off again rather than getting soggy and rotting through the submerged net. We can set up stressed wires and temporary / permanent nets and net frames if this is what you would like.
Further to falling leaves, a proportion of leaves enter by being blown in at ground level, so make sure all sides of the net are either pegged or weighted down to prevent this. An important factor for large and small ponds alike is keeping organic matter to a minimum. Doing this will reduce the food for next year’s algae growth.
As the water temperature is low, the fish in the pond will be very slow. This is because they are cold blooded; this means that their metabolic rate slows and that they require fewer calories to subsist. When the water drops below 8°C it is suggested that only low protein food (wheatgerm or winter food) should be fed. When the water temperature drops below 4°C it is unlikely that your fish will want to feed at all, so monitor your fishes’ behaviour closely during the colder months as it will be the best indicator as to when the fish are interested in feeding. As and when they would like some food, operate a “Feed-to-Need” assessment of your fish’s hunger.
If the fish are swimming near the top of the water or mid water, drop a small amount of food on the surface of the pond. If the fish are interested in feeding, they will rise and consume the food. If they are not, there will only be a small amount of food to be removed from the pond if it is uneaten. If they do eat the food, apply a little more until they have had enough. If there is very cold weather on its way, keep feeding light so that the fish have time to purge their systems prior to the water temperature dropping. One of the biggest killers of fish in the winter time is over feeding. If uneaten food drops to the bottom unseen, and the pond then freezes, this can lead to fatal water quality issues. Always remove uneaten food after 10 minutes. The fish are clearly not interested at this time.
Now that the environment within the pond has slowed down, the pumps and filters that have helped to keep the pond balanced and healthy throughout the spring, summer and autumn are still working hard. They are picking up organic matter from rotting vegetation and stray leaves that have got into the pond. It is therefore important not to turn off the pond’s filtration equipment as this can cause many problems. The issues with turning the filtration system off, is that the water left inside the clarifiers and filters will expand when frozen and crack either the casing and or the delicate quartz sleeve in the UVC. This can be fatal to some incorporated systems and means that the whole system will need to be replaced due to the inability of repair, leading to great expense!
Most modern pumps and filters are very cost effective to run and it is therefore a false economy to switch them off over the cold months. It is also worthwhile periodically checking and cleaning out your filtration system in readiness for the spring. The cold months will slow the action of the bacterial break down so make sure the physical debris in the filter is kept to a minimum.
Please DO NOT use tap water to clean the filter as it will kill the beneficial life in the filter which helps to balance your pond throughout the season. Use only pond or rain water for cleaning as it is chlorine free. Get right into the filter and give it a thorough clean out, right to the bottom if necessary. This should keep the filter going in readiness for the spring. And if it needs doing again later...
As a general rule of thumb, if your filter can not last longer than 4 weeks between services, it is either that you pond is in need of a clean (call us), or that the filter is too small for the pond size and the waste being accumulated (again, call us).
Another good reason for leaving pumps and filters running during the Autumn/winter is to keep the pond from completely freezing over. The moving water and the low-level heat generated by the working pump will help to prevent a total freezing up of the pond’s surface. As long as the water is not disturbing the fish and measures have been taken as described above, the pond equipment will happily run all winter with little intervention. No need to worry about breaking the ice or having to risk life or broken limb on frosty mornings out in the icy garden, happy in the knowledge that the pump is still running.
The final point to raise is to check the water quality periodically; an accumulation of harmful toxins can build up if food or too much organic waste has accumulated. This can lead to fatalities and could also encourage an early algal bloom in the spring. If this is found to be the case, a partial water change of 25-33% should be carried out and topped back up with tap water and a suitable de-chlorinator. Monitoring your pond throughout the winter is very important and not to be ignored. The fish are, after all, your pets and still need care and attention even if the weather is not nice for going outside.
For most gardeners, winter is a dormant time where the pond is concerned, but even though the promise of spring is just around the corner it may seem a long way off. It is, in reality, only a few months away and a little attention now can go a long way in smoothing the transition from one season to the next. If we use this time wisely to carry out a little maintenance, we can be sure that come next spring, your water feature will get the best chance to excel once more.