P, I can probably fill some of your needs. I didn't order any more burgundy okra seeds...but I do have some other new ones (I didn't order the orange because frankly, they didn't look orange to me!). I think I got a shorter variety that is supposed to crank it out. Home Made Pickles cukes are the best I've grown. Not too long (I used a 4.5' oblisk and that held them pretty well, but they could use 6') in the vine and they crank it out. I don't remember if I kept or traded off all the bush type squash. Need bushier melons? I probably have some too. G

J, it seems you have a lot going on in your pond, with fish with tatter fins, koi with bumps/lumps, lost fish etc. Parasite treatments can be very expensive. The larger the volume of water, the more treatment product it is going to take. I use Interpet Parasite treatment, see it here, [http://pondusa.com/treat1.htm] in the Fall as a prophylactic treatment to combat any winter/spring invaders in the pond. It costs about $20.00 to treat 2000 US gallons, a bit more than that in Canada unfortunately!!! Good suggestion about checking the water parameters, i.e. nitrites, nitrogen, ammonia, pH, etc. Was your pond cleaned out last Fall or did you leave it full of leaves and other junk, that could be creating a problem now? Depending on what you find out, re,the fish and water condition, you may have to empty the whole pond and scrub down the sides, vacuum the silt etc, from off the bottom and start all over again, treating the new water with de-chlorinator. Check the link out below about parasites. Here is a link that might be useful: Parasites in the pond.

One side of him is almost flat now - the other side still sticking out a bit - he was like that when this first started, kind of lopsided. Re whats in the water - well I guess I was in the first group of fish owner - total denial - nothing's wrong - then in freakout mode, lurching from treatment to treatment. Salted the pond (very lightly) then found out - no never do that with a bloated fish. Took him out put him in tank with Melafix, then did several water changes over a couple days = 75%, then 4 days of Maracyn 2. I've been done maybe 2 50% water changes over the course of several days, plus put in a fresh charcoal filter (pondmaster filter) Oh. Then more Melafix when the Little Reds were added and now in the process of water changes to get rid of it. I wonder if that stuff is really all that great and might be what was irritating him. He was not flashing/racing as much last night. (BTW, I had sort of an ichy rash on both hands/wrists - I think maybe from putting my hands in the water w/ melafix?) So.... there may be some residue of that stuff, but hopefully not much. Would the proform be OK to use in that circumstance. Ive decided to take out the Little Reds - I think they just annoy and nip at him although they got him out of hiding - and bring in Spot, one of his original pals who has also shown symptoms of parasites at times. Then observe, then possibly treat them together. Mike I gotta thank you for your interest and getting me thinking in a more coherent, less fatalistic way about this. You're the only one (of the many Ive talked to online and in person) who pointed out the social needs of the fish - and indeed what was looking to me like a fish at death's door (cringing, hiding) was him going into survival mode as a prey animal needing to be with others of his own kind. It helps me to know that no matter what happens I did right by him.

OK.....slow down a second. First.....dechlorinator will not do anything for pH. But if your pH is stable, you don't need to do anything for it. Check you kH. That is the level of alkalinity, which is the stabilizing factor for pH. Do not do anything to lower your pH or you may kill the fish. Fish cannot handle a rapid decrease of pH. You DO need dechlorinator though, because of your city water. Make sure your dechlorinator also handles ammonia, because your city water probably has ammonia in it. Ammonia will make fish flash and also lethargic, like you are describing. Prazi pond is not an all-purpose parasite treatment. It only treats for flukes and multiple treatments are necessary. It can be used along with dechlorinator. But don't treat for parasites yet....your fish issues are probably due to water quality and not parasites. So get a test kit....the kind that uses drops and not the strip kind. Check for pH, kH, ammonia and nitrite and post the results here. Also check the pond temperature. If the larger fish are hanging out in the waterfalls, there is a very good chance your oxygen levels are too low. Low oxygen affects larger fish first. They are hanging out by the waterfalls because oxygen levels are highest there. You need to get some aeration going in that pond as soon as possible or you may lose them, especially the big ones.