Re clear ponds. Cliff and joann's pond has been going great guns for years. Note how clear their water is. Most people are looking for that. My approach might not be suitable up north. I am in North Carolina zone 7. the pond freezes over in the winter. I have a stream with tons of plants as well as lillies and aquarium type oxygen generating plants in the pond. I only have goldfish that I specifically got to see motion to indicate depth of clarity. I only have a pump and a perhaps not working skippy filter. I believe almost all of my filtration is coming from the multiple plant root masses in the stream. My pond is completely clear. In past years I had a good deal of string algee, but in this 4th year there is NO algee. I don't intentionally do water changes either, although there is sometimes a leak in the stream where the liner has sagged or a dog or person has crushed the edge. These leaks are usually small but take a week or two to find while I use added water every few days to top off the pond. I think the plants are THE answer.

hey .. glad to hear you backed off on the watering ... ok.. first.. if you figure out how to kill a forsythia.. let us know.. i had a neighbor..dig a 2 foot ball.. on a 12 to 15 foot round bush [he cut it to 3 feet] ... IN AUGUST.. and DRAGGED it 2 acres to my lot.. and we stuck it in the ground.. watered it once .. and it lived ... this is a cut it to the ground.. run it over with the truck type of bush ... as are a lot of shrubs ... [i didnt really want it.. but they so wanted to 'save' it .. i had had ground to cover .. i would have just rooted a few pieces .... but apparently.. he needed the exercise .. lol] i dont even think.. presuming its potted.. that i would worry about waiting for dormancy ... i would probably plant it.. as soon as night temps are reliably in the mid to low 60's .. and water it PROPERLY.. thru the root zone.. late into fall ... say.. 11/1 ... for ground freeze areas.. i would want it in the ground.. 6 to 10 weeks before freeze ... which in MI is usually around 1/1 ... they wont need much of any water in nov ... if there is any rain.. the soil simply will not dry out.. like summer ... so insuring water.. just means checking most of the time ... forsythia root freely ... in a glass of water ... so experiment.. and root a couple 6 inch pieces.. and as soon as you see roots.. pot them all together in moist media .. and tent them in a plastic bag .. and in october or so.. bare root and put in a holding area [veggie patch??].. and i would not be surprised if you dont get a couple to winter over ... there is really NOTHING foo foo about shrubs.. they are the workhorses of the back of the garden .. and need little or no SPECIAL care .. once fully established ... absolutely none of my shrubs have gotten any water in this extreme drought and heat ... and though some look a bit ragged ... i fear for none of them ... but again.. they are 10 years on site ... with all your recent experience with planting trees.. and succeeding wildly[how many did you plant this year??] ... shrubs will be a piece of cake.. unless you go foo foo ... and even those.. will just need a little more water care ... ken

can you post pictures od said "fuzzy green dots" they might be aphids. are they o nthe bottoms of the leaves? Eric

Hi Aurorawa: I spent most of the day working outside. Today was just a beautiful, and warm day. Wow, I was so happy to see a post from you on my Hoya questions. Thank you for all the information. I have a houseplant file, on my puter, and I just copied and pasted most every line, to my Hoya file. I simply have to give this semi hydro culture a go, with a couple orhchids. This sort of project is just too fun. Oh, my hoya soil is a sad story. I mixed the 5-1-1 soil after so much excitement over it here. I did not find pine bark fines, and substituted pro mix. I know it was mixed with meticulous measurements. What ever I did, turned the mix into a sponge, that never ever dried. It was so weird. After repotting again, My Hoya are in about 1/2 plain potting soil, with the other half being perlite and chicken grit, with a dash of bone meal. I am not complaining about the 5-1-1. My mix was just a fail somehow. As for trades, that of course would be so amazing. It is always fun to grow a plant from someone you sort of know. I am not sure I have anything you will want but we will work it out just fine. How about you message me your fav hoya for a novice like me with a Carnosa garden variety, and a Crimson Princess, and we will take it from there. I love love the tips on managing cuttings. All I can say is thank you thank you. Your Hoya growing set up is fascinating, and so nice to see. Thank you for the tour. I would love a small small green house, but strictly to entertain myself. I have always assumed you live up north, in Aurora, Wa., Aurora. Our climates are a really tight match. Small world. Thanks for the great info, so much to read up on. Laurie B