By Guest Author Mark Cropper.
Summer is fast approaching and as the chilly spring weather gradually becomes a thing of the past, it’s important to ensure that your garden pond is fit for the glorious summer months. Tidying up your garden pond for summer doesn’t have to be a difficult task. All it takes is a few small changes and once the job is complete you’ll get a fantastic feeling of satisfaction.
Undoing Winter
As temperatures started to drop in the fall, you probably made a few alterations to your garden pond to protect the inhabitants over winter. Well, the good news is that now it’s time to undo those changes and clean away any winter mess.
First things first, clear away any leaves and debris that have congregated in the pond and around the edges. This can be a messy job and so it might be worth donning your waterproofs and climbing into the pond itself to properly get stuck in. If you didn’t use a pond net or cover this winter, invest in one from a trusted retailer such as Swell UK for next winter to minimize the amount of debris that enters the pond. If the number of leaves is too much to remove by hand, a pond vacuum is a great way of getting the job done quickly. Letting fallen leaves, detritus and waste congregate in the bottom of the pond is a sure fire way to wreak havoc on the quality of water. Problems will arise when these things begin to rot and turn into organic waste, increasing phosphate and algae.
This can also be an ideal time to remove pond plants if possible and trim back or replant any that are overgrown.
Cleaning garden pond equipment
Next, clean the pond pump and pipework to remove any blockages that may prevent it from working efficiently. If you have had any problems with the pump, the most common culprit is usually the impellor, which can easily get covered in muck.
Pond liners are designed to stand the test of time and should last you for years and years. But it is worth checking your liner to ensure that there is no damage caused by herons or other pests.
Dealing with algae in your pond
Now onto every pond owner’s worst nightmare – algae. Algae are photosynthetic organisms, but not in the way land plants are. In your garden pond, they’re an unsightly growth that can be a real nuisance to your pond’s contents. Just like any other plant, algae grow in the presence of light and food, and when given plenty of both, they can spread like wildfire.
Algae treatments can be a great solution if the problem is serious, but we wouldn’t recommend them for long-term use. Treatments come in a variety of forms, from copper-based to more natural formulas. Chemical-based treatments are perfectly safe for fish, but should not be used in a pond with frogspawn or newts, as it can cause them harm. For a more long-term solution, protect your pond from too much sunlight by shading it with floating plants. These should be added when you are sure that there is a minimal risk of frost.
During winter, feeding the fish in your pond isn’t necessary, as they become dormant and enter a stage of semi-hibernation. Therefore providing you have resisted the temptation to feed them on the off-chance that they get peckish, overfeeding is not going to be a problem during winter months. As soon as spring begins and the temperature begins to rise, it’s a good idea to start to feed your fish again as their activity increases and they require more energy. But do this gradually – it can take some time before their appetites return to normal and placing too much food in the pond will cause algae to thrive.
Author Bio: Mark Cropper works for pond and garden watering retailer, Swell UK. Mark has kept a pond for 5 years and is a Koi carp enthusiast, with a special interest in the water chemistry to make his pond a perfect environment for these stunning, colorful fish.