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Last year I posted that I had lost a lot of my goldfish despite replenishing twice.
I have just bought 6 new fish (Tuesday) and found one dead this morning (Friday).
Last year herons were put forward as to some losses as no bodies were found.The pond is now netted over.
Every year I usually lose a couple of fish which is OK but last year lost over a dozen.
This year now stands at 2 losses already.
The pond generally holds around 12 fish (plus frogs,toads and newts) and over 20 years this has been an average level,adding a couple of new fish every now and then.
The only major difference in my pond routine over the last 2 years has been that I have cleaned in the autumn where in previous years it has always been in the spring.
My frogs this year only had one lot of spawn (lost in the hard weather so no tadpoles this year) and my pond plants are also suffering (duckweed included!).The last time I cleaned in the spring I found 22 frogs in the sediment but only 1 in the autumn.
Given that the only difference in my pond maintenance routine is the swap from spring to autumn cleaning I am now thinking of returning to spring cleaning.
Any opinions on this?
It's not always easy to hug a hedgehog.
But that doesn't mean you shouldn't.
There would seem to be some sort of chemical imbalance in the water.
Pondlife suffering is a surefire indicator in this.
I'd suggest getting a testing kit from your local pond suppliers and checking things out. Nitrites and the like can build up through decaying matter to poisonous levels so make sure your filter is working to maximum efficiency.
The pond has no filter and as I say it is only in the last 2 years that I have had the fish losses.
Apart from the change from spring to autumn cleaning everything is exactly the same.
Just some thoughts,plants have not done well and this may be that they don't like being disturbed when going into their winter dormancy whereas in spring they are raring to go.
The same with frogs,they like to hibernate amonst the debris in the pond over winter but if the pond is cleaned they may not survive.
The fish too may need the protection of weed and debris over the winter.
We have also always had fish breed in the pond until recently.
I think I shall go back to spring cleaning and get back to you with the results!
My,my don't posts disappear off the 'front page' quickly!
Just bumping to the top!!
Bump!
It would be interesting to know how you go about cleaning the pond, as this would affect what advice to give you;- I have a number of ponds in my garden, but only 'clean' them by dredging out silt with a stout net when the depth becomes seriously reduced, or when plants are overgrown. If you are completely emptying it, scrubbing it clean, & refilling with tapwater, you're laying yourself open to 'new pond syndrome' every time, which destroys the beneficial nitrifying bacteria that break down the ammonia from the inhabitants' excreta into harmless nitrates, which are then taken up by the plants. It can take up to a year for this natural balance to be achieved in an unfiltered pond, so you may be in a situation where you keep going back to square one, just as the pond becomes really suitable for the inhabitants..
Hope that helps a little,
Chris
I agree with bruciethefish. I was always of the belief that if your pond has plenty of aquatic plants and is of a decent size, it will be able to maintain itself naturally, with the only management neccesary being the thinning out of plants when their growth becomes too thick, and the removal of dead leaves in the autumn. Filters are not strictly essential in my experience either. After all, natural ponds are never cleaned out or filtered and still remain in good condition. I have a pond which hasn't been cleaned out in at least five years (probably longer), and has no filtration whatsoever, with the only management being what I have mentioned above, and yet it has (almost) cristal clear water, healthy plants and healty fish. So perhaps frequent cleaning of ponds is detrimental to some degree.
Here are a few pics of my pond.
1995
The moulded pond that I had was first installed at my old house and did extremely well for the whole 10 years I was there.Cleaned out thoroughly every spring,scrubbed out,clean water,plants divided etc.
When I moved (the house was to be demolished) I decided to take the pond with me!
It came out of the ground very easily and was reinstalled at the new house,the fish living quite happily in a bucket for a few weeks!
2006
That was 10 years ago so the pond mould is now 20 years old.
It is as I say only since I started the autumn cleaning that I have had the problems.
I have had only one fish death this year and since netting the pond have lost no others,so maybe a heron was resposible,though I have never seen one.
2011
I have in the past tried to just divide plants and suck muck off the bottom of the pond but when I lifted out the pots I found that the whole pond practically came up at the same time,the plants and roots were so prolific they came up pond shaped and left only about a foot of water behind!!!
Will be doing the clean in the spring next year and see how I get on.
Hi Mad penguin,
For wildlife ponds it is generally best to do any vegetation maintenance in late summer and August before any of the creatures have started to hibernate, however wildlife ponds don't usually need a full clear out, usually just a bit of thinning out. Have a look at the advice from Pond Conservation on management through the seasons.
Warden Intern at Otmoor.