Baby Goldfish are everywhere, overwhelming the Kois.
Exactly a month ago I gave the pond a good cleaning. I emptied out as much water as I could and with a pool skimmer, I picked up all the winter debris from the bottom.
It’s always touch and go when you mess with the natural balance of a pond, and I was a bit worried, but I felt it needed to be done. New water adds much needed oxygen and minerals to a pond.
The pond took almost 3 hours to fill back up, I estimate the pond to hold about 2,500 gallons of water. As the garden hose was doing it’s magic, I added chemicals to remove the excess chlorine in the tap water, and some salt to control the nitrite levels. Mind you, I’m no expert but I’ve been maintaining my own pond for the last 5 years with the help of the Internet.
This week I started noticing ripples in the water like if there was drizzling rain hitting the surface. I got closer and saw little bitty fishes breaking the surface and feeding off the green algae on the sides of the pond. I was so relieved, the pond was thriving with new life and the water had cleared up enough to enjoy it.
Up on the shore they work all day
Out in the sun they slave away
While we devotin’
Full time to floatin’
Under the sea