So, What's Up With the Koi?
I ask in all seriousness, especially anyone local to "Zone 7b" who keeps koi and/or goldfish in a small outdoor pond (Husband interjects here to say that people "don't exactly keep indoor ponds," but ha HA, Mr. Smart Guy, I have seen one, complete with stream and fountain, in a Sherwood home, so there). We inherited a koi pond with the recent purchase of our new home. The previous owner claims that he, too, inherited it from those who lived here before he and his family did, and never to have fed or otherwise cared for the fish, and only to have changed out the water one time in eight years, when a liner started leaking and had to be replaced, at which time they counted around 40 fish. We have never been able to convince the fish to line up for an official census, but there are a fair number of what seems to be a wide variety of fish in there, and we are clueless as to how to care for them, and we seek help.
I have poked around on numerous "koi pond" websites, but there are so many types of koi, I can't possibly identify what we've got, or whether they even ARE all koi. Some of them are goldfish. Some are white and orange, some are black and red, some are black and orange, some are plain and greyish, with a bit of red--and these appear to be reproducing--and we've spotted one new one that is a crazy amalgamation of colors represented nowhere else in the pond. This last character even has BLUE spots. Their size runs the gamut from the inch-long babies to eight-to-ten-inch Big Boys. Or Girls. We've also raised a healthy crop of tadpoles to hearty adult froghood over the summer.
Bella got a pair of goldfish back in April, and one of them, Gil, died within a couple of weeks. When the survivor, Carl, started looking a little "green around the gills," so to speak, we liberated him into the outdoor pond, thinking he could hardly do worse. He was a tiny thing, just over an inch long, and there was some concern that he might be eaten by the larger and more firmly established koi polloi of the pond environment, but he was definitely not thriving where he was, so we risked it. That fish is now at least 5 inches long. At least. So we must be doing something right. We had learned that you should feed your pond fish during the warm "growing" season, so we began buying "pond pellets," and feeding with the suggested frequency from the instructions on the package. That is, more often when it's hot, and less often when it's...less hot.
I found a chart online recently that indicates that pond fish should stop being fed altogether once the water temperature drops to 54 degrees and below, and that feeding should not be resumed until the water temp rises above 54 again in the spring. I've never owned, throughout my years of many many pets, any sort that did nto require being fed daily, regardless of the temperature, so this concept is causing me some mild anxiety. We definitely notice a decline in the fish's appetites on cooler days, but boy, do they love being fed. It took them about a week to learn what that was all about, and now they swarm the edge of the pond whenever people approach, hoping for a handout.
So...do we do ANYTHING for these guys over the winter? The pond is smallish, has a pump/filter, and a little fountain. It's filled with water-lilies and Japanese iris, is surrounded by bamboo and yucca and weeping holly (I removed the previous owner's family of plastic duck decoys), and I've grown to love it. I would like it to thrive, without having to delve neck-deep into complete koi-pond minutiae. Is there a pond-fish authority in the North Pulaski/Lonoke County area that we should consult? Or will any major outdoor fish-related advice and/or supply-gathering mean a trip to Little Rock?
You can read more from Belinda at NINJA POODLES!, her "home base" on the internet.
Comments
You have to either stop feeding them per instructions, or continue feeding them through the whole winter. If you continue for a bit, then stop, you'll probably kill them. They'll hibernate if you stop feeding them, but if you continue then they'll expect the food. Good luck!
Posted by: CeCe | September 14, 2006 09:41 AM
We have two ponds at the house with who knows how many koi, goldfish and other assorted tenants. You should stop feeding them and then just let them be, they will "hibernate" during the colder months, which really means they swim around slow under the ice. We leave our pond system on all the time and haven't had any problems with freezing, etc. You may want to keep an eye on your fountain to make sure it doesn't freeze up and cause a backflow if it gets really cold.
Posted by: tbe | September 14, 2006 10:57 AM
CeCe: Thanks--now that I understand from reading YOUR blog that it can get darn hot in British Coumbia, too (who knew? OK, everyone but me), I certainly respect your input about the changing seasonal needs of fish. I also learned, from your blog, about the horrendously frightening "Idiot Fish" that your husband was on the fishing-boat crew to harvest a while back, and was able to startle the heck out of Alex with a picture of one! Heh.
tbe: Are you local? I'm convinced (but, dang it, I will fret about them being "hungry"...because I am a Southern mom) to stop feeding in winter. May I ask a few follow-up questions (I hope you stop back in)?
1. Do you stop feeding AND KEEP IT STOPPED from the very first day that the water temp reaches 54 degrees, even if, as commonly happens here in Arkansas, it warms back up again after that? Similarly, in the spring, do you start feeding again the first day the water temp is 54 or above, and keep feeding? Or just kind of watch for when the fish become active again?
2. What sort of "pond system" do you use? The filter and pump that were in place when we moved in would clog so quickly (we'd know because the fountain stopped running at those times) that Husband replaced it with a better one, but he just picked something up at Lowe's, I think.
3. If the pond ices completely over, do you worry about making some holes in the ice, for oxygen to get through? Or do you just rely on the water-plants for that? And are you banging your head on your keyboard at the stupidity of these questions?
Thanks for the tip about the fountain possibly freezing. Seems like that might burn our pump engine out, too.
Posted by: Belinda![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.arktimes.com/blogs/ninjapoodles/nav-commenters.gif)
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September 14, 2006 02:38 PM
I was a former water garden supplier and can give you a few tips that may help.
You can tell the Koi from the goldfish by the little "whiskers" the Koi have on the sides of their mouths. Koi will also live up to 50 years, while goldfish only about 10.
You don't have to feed the fish at all in an outdoor pond. There is plenty of live food. The reason to feed them is to socialize them and to help them reproduce if you want them to. If the water starts getting green, feed less. In the fall stop feeding them. It's not rocket science, so you really can't mess up too badly. The main thing is to NOT OVERfeed them. Underfeeding is better.
About the pond icing over, if it's just for a few days it's not a problem. More than that and you shoud use hot water to create a hole in the ice so gas can escape. DO NOT hit the ice to break it. You may cause a concussion that could kill your fish.
The only issue about pumps is whether they will leak oil or some other fluid into the water if they fail. Otherwise, any pump will do.
Posted by: rablib | September 14, 2006 06:15 PM
Thanks, rablib! I'm glad you warned me about breaking ice. And sooo...the on-again, off-again algae problem may be our own doing, because we're feeding them, and otherwise they might eat the algae? Or did I just write something incredibly stupid? Anyway, I've seen all kinds of "algae eradication" products, from chemicals to barley straw, to all kinds of weird little floaty things, and have never known if they were needed.
I'm guessing we have maybe 10 koi, and the rest are goldfish and...something else. I swear, the most numerous denizens of the pond look, to me, like teeny-tiny bream or something. Except with red spots. I am SO educated in icthyology.
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September 14, 2006 08:48 PM
I had friends who inherited a koi pond when they bought their house. They did practically nothing to it except fish (heh) out grime from the top and the fish lived for years until they had the pond removed.
Posted by: Suburban Turmoil | September 15, 2006 12:46 PM
ST: That ending sounds horrible! Was there summary execution of pond residents when it was "removed?" Please tell me they were sent to a happy fish farm where they could swim free and play...
Posted by: Belinda![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.arktimes.com/blogs/ninjapoodles/nav-commenters.gif)
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September 16, 2006 12:19 AM
When it comes to algae, we need to know what we are talking about. There is the "pea soup" kind that is dispersed throughout the water, then there is the "hair" type that is like mossy strings. The latter type is very good, if it doesn't become too prevalent. It will help clear the "pea soup" kind of algae, so it's good to leave some of it in the water, especially on the surfaces of the water garden. It makes good nitrogen rich mulch for your land plants that you want to green up.
The algae grows when there is more hours of sunlight and nitrogen in the water.
Feeding the fish too much can add this problem because the fish waste contains nitrogen. Not having enough other plants to suck up the nitrogen can also be a factor. The more sunlight, the more likely it is to have an algae problem. It's a balancing act.
A lot of times there will be a "pea soup" type of algae bloom in the spring before the other plants get going that will clear up almost overnight once they get going.
Some people will put in floating tropical plants to control algae. Water Hyacinths work well, but will multiply like crazy. The extras can be used for mulch for land plants, and will break down into really rich compost. It is claimed they will die in the winter, but I have had some survive now and then. The dead ones have to be removed or they will foul the water as they rot.
Hope this helps.
Posted by: rablib | September 16, 2006 05:26 PM
By the way, I have no idea what those teeny fish are. Maybe Mosquito Fish?
Or could they be something wild from a river or pond? Maybe if you capture one and take a picture of it someone would know.
Posted by: rablib | September 16, 2006 05:30 PM
We bought a couple koi years back as tiny 2-3" and now they ar eon thier way to 9-10". How do you tell the kind of Koi? We have them in a 50 gallon tank(gotta love apartment living), but soon we will be moving to a house where we will get a pond. There is 2 koi, 1 black moor, a couple small goldfish and a couple placatimus's (algae eaters). Our filters get fried fast with the algae, which is why we got our secon dalgae eater. I have pictures here of our big boy, if you can give me any help http://s56.photobucket.com/albums/g186/widowwolf/koi/
Posted by: Gary | November 10, 2006 10:42 PM