Congrats on the koi. At least yours swim around. Mine are stupid and hide under the filter. I have comets in the other pond and they are great. They swim around but my koi suck! I was at the fish store and was thinking about getting a channel cat to scare the &^%@ out of them. Maybe that would make them swim a little. lol
Karyn

D I only one name..LOL Fish Stick?? Congrats!!!
Karyn come on down and fish...LOL
Kylie

Great Name Kylie....LOL Fish Stick!

Karyn my Koi do the same thing they hide in and around everything. Really hacks me off. I have to go digging for them if I want to see them. LOL

This is the first time I've ever had the problem. It may just be the shape and depth of the pond, I don't really know but I don't like it. I got them to see and enjoy.

Daniella I don't think they grow as fast in a smaller pond. The will enjoy the algae as well. I don't know too much about the blood worms. Someone sent me some pond plants and the inside of the bag was covered with those tiny long skinny red worm looking things. I had them once before at another home and they got so bad the filter stayed clogged with them. I decided agains putting any of those plants from that bag into that pond. I don't want to have to go through all that garbage again. I had also bought some freeze dried stuff and some of it hatched into one of my ponds. The fish loved it but it was nightmare to contend with when cleaning the pumps, filter and so forth. Now I'm a little more careful about what I throw in them. LOL But if I don't use it in one of my Koi ponds I use it in another one....so nothing goes to waste. LOL

Congrats on the new fish.I don't remember how many children you have but why not name them after them, or Larry, Curley, and Moe. LOL

`SHEESH! ` We have to see your ponds!!! more picts please!!!!

Your fishies are beautiful! I am jelous!!

Thank you everyone. Aw Barry, don't be jealous!
lmao Kylie, 'fish stick'!
Karyn, so far they are all swimming constantly. Hope they continue to do so. I love watching them. The bigger 2 seem like they have changed colors already. In the PetCo the one was all gold with black "nostrils" now he is metallic gold and blue. The other was all silver and is now blue and metallic white. Tricolor still looks the same. Guess it's the temp and environment. OK Barry, here's some pix! Just took em!
Day 1:

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Today..still not done, but getting close...

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I am waiting for DH to bring home a new puppy. Can't say no to a homeless animal..8 wk old mix. I already have his name figured out. wish the fish were that easy. My 1st dog is "Duke" , puppy is "Daisy" and the newest lil guy will be "Cooter" Can't go with "Bo" sounds too much like 'No' ..See the pattern, lol. Was one of my fav shows when I was younger. My sis's dog is "Luke" but he came from the shelter with that name, what a coinky dink, lol.

Oh, that looks great. I think I have the same one as yours not the kidney shape but the other one. The side ledge is too small to put anything in and my pots won't stay put. I have to do something different. What do you have in the bottom? I put pea gravel in mine. I want some fish in my outside one now. We named our Algea eater spike since he is huge and the silver dollars are Larry Moe and Curly, lol. The angel fish is Angie. Are we original or what. I need some river rock too to fill in around the pond. It looks really nice you did a good job. I could kick myself in the butt for not getting that waterfall and pond last week when I was sick. I could have gotten the whole thing with filter for $30 but I was to sick to go look at it. I could have joined mine like you did. Good luck with the puppy!

your pond looks great, we are still working on ours. The koi will grow only as big as they can in the amount of water you have them in...more water, bigger fish.

I hope you will post a picture of the puppy !

Not sure about names...what about "flake", " speckles", "Nemo"...we will keep thinking.

Oh your fish are wonderful! I think that big ole sucker in front should be Shamu... The second should be Flipper... and uh... the third... uh hmmmm.......what was Nemo's girlfriends name??? the one that Ellen did her voice??? Anyway that should be number 3. :)

Your ponds look great! My Mother named 2 of her fish "Flash" and "Splash"..

Danielle,
I use the metal pot hangers for a deck rail to hang my potted pond plants in from the side of my small -like yours- preformed pond. You may need to bend them down a bit to keep the edge of the pot submerged, but they work real well. If you have the kind of pots that are hard plastic and look netted, you can run coathanger through them and back out to hang on the rim also. I dont have as many ledges as I woud like, and this works very well for me. I use unscented plain clay kitty litter as a planting medium with river rock on the top to keep it from coming out of the pot. (Flush the pot after planting with the hose to get rid of the small particles of litter BEFORE putting it in the pond.) Use aquatic plant food at the time of planting. I have made "pots" from landscape fabric, just sewn it into a round, and stitched on a bottom. A whole lot cheaper than if you were to buy them. Also if you are plagued by string algae,which seems to happen with new water in ponds, use some plain old hydrogen peroxide. Maybe a half to a whole small bottle spread along where the stuff is growing, and maybe again in about a week if needed. You will see it work within 6-8 hours. It WILL kill the string algae, WON"T harm the fish or other plants. When we loose power in the summer and the pumps can't run, I use it also to oxygenate the water. We have Koi,and Sarrasa Comets that are doing well, and have been out for the last 6 years or so , year round. The sarrasa's have spawned for the past 2 years, but the ponds are not big enough for the Koi to spawn... ---You can maybe name the fish - Fish1 & Fish2,??? not real original,but not too confusing ....
Sandra
^,,^

Talented danielle, so good looking so early! impressive, keep us updated........ do you have to have the fence for the kids?

Congrats on your fishies! They are cute! I don't have names for mine, too many to keep track of! Your ponds look awesome! Great job!

Theresa

danielle, Your pond looks great!you did a really good job. Now I want a pond.Well maybe someday when the kids are a little older.Right now we have a swing set,trampolen,sandbox and a playskool slide combo.

Rigo:0)

Oh I am so jealous!!! I want a pond too. Maybe next year, I have so many unfinished projects right now. You have done a great job!

Mary

I would name them after the stars in the sky. Since your children want to pick out the names, they would have to research, and then decide. Names like Lyra, Alpha, Beta, or Vega. Barbra,

Thank you everyone.
Barbra, I like that idea!! ANyone know if adding aquarium salt to your pond makes suds? I have alot of suds in my pond right now, and the only thing I added was the salt to make it less stressful for the new fish. But it happened last week, or the week before as well, and I hadnt had any salt in there then.. Soapy looking suds, they even leave the soapy outline when they pop on the wall of the pond. When I scoop them out in the net, they kinda sound like they are sizzling? Any ideas? I'm gonna post on the pond forum as well.

Here are some pix of the new puppy. We were told it was a boy, pit/ german shpeherd mix, 8 wks old. I don't think so, lol. 1st off, she's a girl, 2nd I think she's more like 6 wks, and maybe has some dutch shepherd in her. People assume pit when they see brindle, but I don't see pit in her, although since she's a mutt, I guess she could have it in her and its just not showing in her features.
Any opinions on what she may be? Since she's a girl she totally messed up my Dukes of Hazzard theme, lol. Maybe I'll name her Bear.

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AWWW! A beautiful new pond AND a puppy..LOL I must be doing something wrong...LOL
OMG your daughter is Beautiful!!!!
Kylie

Kristy, Thank you. The upper, lol..smaller kidney shaped pond is aprox 5x3 and the lower bigger pond is kinda bone shaped? and is aprox 6x4. Both are 18"deep or so..I remember one was deeper than the other. The plant shelves are at an odd level. I put the yellow iris in mesh bags with pea gravel and they are on shelves. The water lilies are in pots sitting on the bottoms. 1 is in a tub. The Thalia Dealbata is in a pot on a shelf, but I had to cut the top part of the pot off so it didnt stick out of the water. I have pea stone on top of the dirt for the plants, and nothing on the bottom. I also have some submersed oxygenator plants that I dont even know what they are, lol. I think it would be too much of a PITA to clean that way. Just like cleaning an aquarium, you'd have to rinse all the gravel. The gunk will build up on and between, easier to have the bare bottom just scoop all the leaves n crap out. You should have had DH go get it for ya!

Barry, thank you, yes the fence is for the kids, also to keep the dogs out. I can just see the kids running or riding their bikes, forgetting its there and falling in, lol.

Sandra,
I had read that about the Hydrogen Peroxide, and bought some the other day. I don't have much algae, just a thin coating so far. If it gets out of hand and is too much for the Koi & Plecos to handle I plan on dosing it. I think I have enough plants in it, I don't want too much cuz I wanna be able to see the fish.Just gonna get a couple more submersibles, like anacharis..If I can ever find it. I hope my koi have babies..that would be so cool.

Rigo, come on, you can jam one in there somewhere! lol!

Theresa, how many fish do you have? I'm thinking I dont have enough, lol. But we know how that goes, right..have too much but still isnt enough, lol. Thank you.

LMAO Neon, you mean Dori, she wasn't Nemo's girlfriend though, or she'd be in fishy jail, lol. The kids would like that, but my luck Dori would wind up being a boy.

Mary, if you do, I can send you some water irises, lol. Supposedly they multiply really fast, so by time you have yours up and going next year I should have some to share!

I can't wait till the brugs and other plants get bigger in that area. It looks so nice in my head. Dang it, I wish it could be warm yr rnd. I gotta move.

LMAO Kylie..no, I'm the one doing something wrong! I'm insane to be taking on another puppy right now. I have too much going on, by this time next year, I'll be tending an imaginary pond and beautiful big brugs all in my head while I'm in the loony bin, lol. I overdo everything.
Thank you for the compliment on my daughter :) She's a handful that one is. She'll be 9 on Monday, and she's not letting anyone forget. She also has a baby shower for her mouse planned for that day. At least I'll only have to bake one cake, lol. Whoever heard of a baby shower for a mouse???? Kids, man..

Oh my god Daniella that is so funny! A baby shower for the mouse, lol. She is really cute and the puppy looks like a little bear cub. Thanks for the pond info. Are you crazy get hubby to go get it, lol. I drag everything home and then he can't say no. I will never tell him beforehand if I get something that he thinks means more work for him, lol. I know what you mean about the vision in your head. I can't wait til all my stuff grows up and fills in.

Daniella, what a great job you did on your ponds! Wonderful home for your new fish. Your lab and now the new pup are so cute, but better yet are your children :-) Too funny, a baby shower for a mouse, LOL! I'll have to share that story.

lol Kristy, same here..If I see something I want I have to get it myself just so DH cant say no!
I have been calling the puppy fuzzy bear since yesterday, she answers to it..or so it seems, lol.
Isn't it terrible waiting for the stuff to grow?? I go out every day just willing it to go, hoping when I get out there, I will see some freaky miraculous growth spurts on my seedlings, lol. I'm so impatient. O & BTW, yes, I can now agree that I have gone completely crazy, lol. Like I said up there ^, by this time next year I'm gonna be in a nut house! lol!

Thank you El! Yeah that girl is a trip.

I went to the pet shop at lunch to see what they had and they have no Koi, pout but they have a humongous goldfish that someone traded in that was too big for the aquarium it was in. I want it, lol. I figure one big one is better than a bunch of little ones, lol. I am going back this afternoon to see how much they price it. Since they wanted $9.99 for a small fantail goldfish I probably won't be able to afford it but I can wish. I will get the 5 small regular goldfish I have a coupon for if its too expensive.

Nice ponds, cute puppy. I feel like I missed so much stuff while I was getting my internet situation straightened out. I am thinking about puttin in a preformed pond too. Do you have to have any permits to put them in?
Shawn

Hey Daniella, if its a girl what about Daisy??? It stays with your theme. I hate it when dogs get labeled pit because they are brindle. We have one brindle dog, more terrier than anything else, and a few vet techs have tried to put the pit label on her. She is scared of her own shadow.

Mary

Dang it I went back to the pet store and they had sold the giant goldfish. Made me mad since they had told me it was in quarantine until tomorrow and wasn't priced yet. I got my 5 free ones and they are so cute. I have them floating right now. About to go let them loose.

I have several comets in my bigger pond and they are great. They'll swim around and come to the side to be fed. Much more entertaining then my stupid koi. I've also had them for a year. They are about 10-12" now and I don't think they'll get any bigger. My ponds are about the same sizes as yours. Your puppy is SOOOO CUTE! She does look younger then 8 weeks. Her paws look pretty big in one of those pics, maybe she'll be a big dog. Congrats on both, the fish and the puppy.
Karyn

Thanks!

Shawn, I was wondering where you went! Glad your back! I hope I dont need permits, but its possible. You should call your town hall and ask. I have a fenced in yard, so I really wasnt worried about it, plus I have the ponds fenced in as well cuz of the kids and dogs.

Mary, I agree. The dude we got her from still insists she is a pit and male..argh. We'll see what the vet thinks. I already have a "Daisy" she's the German Shorthaired Pointer in the one pic. We are all calling the new one "Fuzzy Bear" now, and its sticking. She already answers to it. Can't wait till she can hold her bladder better tho, lol. I have her in my bed at night, & last night I didn't wake up when she needed to go out, and she peed on my arm at 2am. Nice, eh? lol.

Kristy, that sux! I'd be pretty ticked. But at least you got your goldies, and for free! can't beat that! Take pix once they get swimming around!!

Karyn, I LOL every time I read "stupid Koi"! I want more fish, but I don't want to overload. As it is I have to clean my pre-filters every day already, and I just put those fish in! I havent even fed them yet. The Koi ate all my watercress except what they cant get to. And they already dug up a water lily!! I didnt think they would, I read they didn't do that till they were bigger. I made sure to secure it really well this time. Will do the other in that pond tomorrow. I dont see any blood worms, I think the Koi ate them all. good riddance!

I'm not sure about her paws, they seem so tiny to me. The more I look at her, and how long her body is, I think she may be part Corgi..I honestly think they are ugly dogs, lol. No offense to anyone who might have one. But I am sure no matter what she is or what she looks like when she gets older, I'll love her the same...no matter how freaky she may look, lol.
DD, the soon to be mouse granny, is very excited we finally have a dog with a tail, lol. The other 2 have docked tails.

Theresa, the water cress you gave me is flowering!! Seems to be doing the best in the streambed. Thanks again. And I will call you!! I've just been so dang busy! I havent even been able to check my email, so if anyone emailed me and I havent gotten back yet, I'm sorry, and I will soon!

Daniella

Daniella, your daughter & the puppy are beautiful! So funny about the mouse baby shower!LOL When the weather & the pond warm up, your willing your plants to grow overnight will come true! I'm already pulling out handfuls of the watercress.Mine is in my stream also. My goldfish eat it too! Healthy treat! BTW, I have about 30 fish. I wouldn't buy any more fish,they will have babies. I started out with 5 feeder fish about 6 yrs. ago. Some have died. Added 2 Wakin 2yrs. ago. The winter might be tricky for them. Karyn, how deep is your preform?Have you lost any fish?
Koi are more destructive than goldfish. You might have to put bigger than pea gravel on your lilies to keep them from digging.
How is everyone lotus doing? I put mine back in the pond. I couldn't stand the mosquito larvae & the withering leaves.

Kristy, you might not recognize your goldies in a few days!LOL They will change color in the sun.
Hope everyone is enjoying their gardens!

Theresa

I'm not exactly sure how deep my ponds are but the small one is pretty shallow, maybe 18". The other is deeper but I still ran a filter all winter to make sure it didn't freeze solid. I put the fish from the little pond into the big one over the winter and allowed the little pond to freeze. I haven't lost any fish so far but I just might get rid of the stupid koi and replace them with comets. The Mystery snails are more active then the koi!

I want pics from the mouse shower. That's too funny. Be warned that you might end up with lots of mice if you don't separate the babies fast. I rescued two mice from my friend's snakes. Rodan and Rodess quickly multiplied to who knows how many and I ended up taking them to a pet store and told them to feed their reptiles!!!!!
Karyn

LOL Karyn, we already have the 2nd tank ready to go for as soon as they can leave momma. I will take pix of this crazy baby shower.

Theresa, thank you :)
Holy cow you have 30? do you have pre-filters? If so how often do you have to clean them? I am cleaning mine every day. I am thinking of putting river rocks in the waterlily pots. I was watching the fish yesterday and they kept going in the pots nosing and digging around. Guess I have to go to the park and borrow some more rocks, lol. Saw some baby catfish in the stream there last week, I wanna go get one so bad.

I keep telling myself they will probably have babies, but my luck they are probably all male.

My lotus is finally putting up another leaf stalk. The first leaf has dark spots on it, is that bad? It was under water for a few days because of all the rain we had, but I took some out yesterday. I read somewhere online that if you put a lil mineral oil in the water, it kills the larvae cuz they can't get any air. I may have to try that since my dunks aren't working for sh!t! I am so sick of scooping out the larvae everyday, nasty lookin lil things.

Karyn, what brand do you buy?

Theresa, If you put the lotus into your pond won't it make alot of algae?

Daniella,
The spring is a bad time for excess algae growth, because the pond plants aren't big enough to rob the algae of excess nutrients in the water.Wrap your prefilter in quilt batting, change when you feel it's necessary. Does a great job! My pond is 2/3 filled on top surface with plants in summer. That also blocks alot of sunlight for algae growth & keeps water cooler for fish. You might have to add cool water in the heat of the summer if water temps get above 90. Get some water dechlorinator, then you can add cool hose water directly to pond.
You probably should not add other fish or plants from a different water source, unless you go through a quarantine period.Perfectly healthy fish from different sources, could carry diseases or parasites,deadly to other fish. You'll have to read up on that in the pond forum. Some ponders had to learn the hard way. BTW, did you know you were called a "ponder" now? LOL
I don't have trouble with algae. Your pond is new so it will have to go through a balancing act for a few seasons. It doesn't hurt the fish. Partial water changes are beneficial. Clean filter material with POND water not chlorinated water. Beneficial bacteria in filter material will die in chlorine. Sorry everybody for the long post.
Theresa

LOL Theresa, It hadn't dawned on me that I am now considered a 'ponder'! Mine is cycling well, had that pea soup stage for less than a week, and it seems everything is going well. I know I need the thin coat of algae to maintain the natural biological blah blah blah, lol. It hasn't gotten out of hand yet. Just in case, I did buy some Hydrogen Peroxide last week. And I did use the good bacteria stuff when I first got it going. I have the prefilters wrapped in aquarium sponges and then cheesecloth. I have also been rinsing them in either pond water, or rain water, which is what I have been using more of since we are getting so much of it. That's also what I have been using to do the partial water changes once a week, as well topping off the lotus tub when it needs it. Then I use the extra water for the plants. I know I have quilt batting somewhere in my closet with all my material n stuff, it's just that I can't find it, lol. (It's one of those closets that gets messy real fast, lol..you open the door a crack and just push something in the crack so it doesnt all fall on you! Just happens no matter how often I straighten it up.) That's why I have been using the sponges and cheesecloth for now. I also have some activated charcoal in the skippy in front of the water outlet. Think that's what cleared up the pea soup so fast. Which I think was made worse by all the pollen from the trees. The waterlilies are really poppin out pads fast so I think I should have some good coverage soon. O and yes, I do have the dechlorinator. Havent used it yet though. If I know am gonna need water, and dont have the rain water, I just fill up some buckets w/hose water and let them sit for 24 hrs before I use em.
As for the catfish, I know..that's why I havent gotten him yet, I'm nervous he'll get the Koi sick.
Thank you!

My new leaves all have those funny spots too. I had one getting really big before squirrel chewed it down. No I am down to one little leaf have two more coming out.

What kind of catfish are you looking at? They are selling baby chanel cats at our local aquarium where I buy my fish. Don't buy one unless your fish are about a foot long or they'll be eaten before long. The chanel cats grow fast, even in a small pond. I was going to get one to terrorize and eat my koi but I'm not quite that cruel. lol
Karyn

Kristy, glad your lotus is coming back and doing well. Those squirrels man..Really..what purpose do they serve?

Karyn, I don't know, lol. And now I am even wondering if they were catfish..I saw them from a distance, but now I really don't think they were. hey were very bright silver, in only about 6" of water, about 10" long. I assumed catfish cuz they were low and wide, and swimming like catfish. But I can't find any pix online of bright silver young catfish like I saw. I wonder if maybe someone let something from their pond or aquarium go in there? I'm gonna go back today while the kids are at school..see if they are still there. Maybe I can get a closer look and some pix.
Speaking of eating Koi..something tried to get mine yesterday during the day. They were fine yesterday morn, and when I went out at about 5:30 the metallic gold and black one is not using it's right pec fin at all. Seems to be having a hard time swimming once in awhile. But when I stick the net in there, he swims fine. Drama already.
And the metallic blue/silver guy.. (He's been named "Big Blue") His right pec fin is completely split. But he doesnt seem to be having any probs swimming.

I have problems with herons fishing in my ponds. I wonder if that's what is getting to yours? Once the foliage fills in they aren't a problem. The aquarium sells life sized fake herons to keep the real ones away from your pond. Evidently they are territorial birds and won't land if they see another one already there. I'm not getting one. First off they are expensive and secondly they're ugly. I wonder if my pink flamingos will serve the same purpose? lol I sent you an email about the dunks.
Karyn

Karyn, I dont know..We do have them around here, But I think if it were herons, the fish would be gone. I can't see myself putting up a big fake heron.
The heron might get a crush on your flamingos. I can just see the heron nuzzling up to one! lol
I got the emails and replied, thank you very much!