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The Best Types Of Fish For Your Garden Pond

2006-10-01T12:43:00.001+07:00

By Anne Clarke
There are many reasons as to why you might want to have fish in your garden pond – they add beauty, color, and interest to your garden and act as a sort of outdoor “pet.” But there are other good reasons for putting fish in your pond, as well. For one, fish will eat pesky mosquitoes as well as pond algae. Overall, pond fish are also fairly easy to care for, too.
Now that I have convinced you to get some fish for your garden pond, let us go over a few types of popular outdoor pond fish – most outdoor pond fish are freshwater-coldwater types.
Comet goldfish
This type of goldfish is going to be able to handle varied conditions in your pond – this includes varied conditions due to weather, as well as conditions due to your inexperience with pond fish. Comet fish can endure variations in both temperature and water quality. Comet goldfish are distinguishable by their long single tails – like a comet. They come in a variety of colors, including red and white. Also, comet goldfish tend to be fairly inexpensive. Chances are, your comet gold fish will live for 14 years and grow up to 10 inches long.
Shubunkin goldfish (aka calico goldfish)
This is a very interesting goldfish – like a common goldfish, shubunkin goldfish have long bodies and a single tail, but they are brightly colored in a mix of fantastic colors… red, brown, blue, yellow, and violet. They are also distinguished by black spots on their bodies and tails. This is a very tough goldfish type. Make sure that your pond has plenty of plants and open areas for swimming. If you have shubunkin goldfish, do not put telescope goldfish or bubble eye goldfish (and other slow swimming fish) in with them – they might end up starving because shubunkin goldfish will get to the food first… and they do not share. Rather, you should get your shubunkins a koi or two as buddies.
Koi
Koi range from very inexpensive to very expensive – there is quite a variety as to the type and quality of koi. By quality, I am referring to the color and patterns displayed on the koi’s scales. As abovementioned, koi can cohabitate with other goldfish like comets and shubunkins very well. Koi can grow to be several feet long, and they can live from 25-50 years! Some people think that koi are gold fish, but they are only distant cousins to the goldfish – they are actually much more closely related to the common carp. While koi can handle a wide range of temperatures, as sudden change in temperature can affect them adversely. Koi will get along with other tropical fish, as well.
Whichever type of fish that you decide to get for your pond, be sure that you get ones that will cohabitate well and ones that are durable (like the abovementioned types of fish). Also make sure that you do not try to stick too many fish in too small of a pond. Consider having only one inch of fish per gallon of pond water. A 10 foot by 10 foot pond can typically support about 20 five inch fish… This math equation might be a bit too much – a general rule of thumb is to start with just a few, and go from there. Remember that your fish will grow!
Just a note: If you are new to having fish in your pond, you may want to avoid fantail varieties – these are not quite as durable as other types of goldfish.
Anne Clarke writes numerous articles for websites on gardening, parenting, fashion, and home decor. Her background includes teaching and gardening. For more of her articles on fish and ponds, please visit Pond Filters.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Anne_Clarke

The Best Types Of Fish For Your Garden Pond

2006-10-01T12:43:00.000+07:00

Before Creating a Koi Pond

2006-10-01T12:41:00.000+07:00

By Anne Clarke
Koi ponds require a lot of time and maintenance. If you are not ready to invest time into your koi pond, then you should most definitely not invest the money into one. Koi do function as beautiful garden “decorations,” in a sense, but they are really much more like pets than simple garden décor.
This is because you are going to need to take the time to care for koi much like you need to take the time to care for pets. You want to be sure that your koi pond is a very healthy environment so that your Japanese carp will flourish. Also, you want to make sure that your water remain clear so that you can enjoy your koi.
Here are things to consider before building your koi pond:
· The bigger the better. It is best to build a koi pond that is larger than 500 gallons.
· The deeper the better. Make sure that it is at least 2 feet deep, but preferably much deeper (a 6 foot deep koi pond takes up no more room in your yard than a 2 foot deep one!)
· Include at least one bottom drain.
· Be sure that the bottom slopes toward the drain and away from any incoming water (like waterfalls, etc.)
· Make a good shape. To be a proper Japanese koi pond, shape and style of the pond itself is everything. For your own pond, you can simply choose a shape that is most aesthetically pleasing to your own eye (and a shape that fits well in your yard!).
· Vertical walls will increase your pond volume and help protect your koi from predators.
· Have a pond skimmer system. Look for one with a “weir.”
· Use a specialized biological filtration system instead of a mechanical or chemical filtration system.
· Heat it during the winter.
· Keep a good feeding regime.
· Keep a good cleaning regime.
These are just a few things that you must do or must be aware of before creating your own koi pond. If you are still interested in doing so, then go for it!
Anne Clarke writes numerous articles for websites on gardening, parenting, fashion, and home decor. Her background includes teaching and gardening. For more of her articles on koi ponds, please visit Pond Depot.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Anne_Clarke

Hand Feeding your Koi

2006-09-16T00:07:00.000+07:00

By Brett Fogle
One of the most rewarding and entertaining things about having a
Koi pond is when your fish finally start eating out of your hand.
There is no better way to learn each fishes' personality and
temprament than to have them nuzzle your fingers when they are
hungry.

The key to training your Koi to eat from your hand is patience
and conditioning. Like any wild animal Koi have a natural
distrust for anything that they think can hurth them, and you're
plenty big enough to do that as far as they are concerned.

If your goal is hand feeding then you need to start training from
the very first time that you feed a new fish. Of course, it's not
too late to start training your existing fish, but it's easier if
you start out that way.

If you have been feeding your fish by simply broadcasting the
food on top of the water then stop doing that immediately.
Instead, bring your feed bag next to the pond and kneel down.
Then, place a few pellets in your hand, submerge your hand, and
let the pellets slowly fall out. Don't worry if your fish seem to
not be paying attention. They know that your hand is in the water
and they know that pellets just appeared out of nowhere.

Eventually one or two will swim up and eat. When that happens,
the rest of them will follow. Continue slowly dropping pellets
from your hand until you have fed your normal amount. Repeat that
process for about a week.

The following week, set up as you did last week, but this time
submerge your hand and hold the pellets in your slightly cupped
palm. Hold your hand steady and don't make any movements.
Eventually at least one fish should come over and eat from your
hand. It is essential that you do not make any quick movements
while this is happening. Remove your empty hand and repeat the
process. If the fish will not approach your hand to feed, then do
not fedd them that day. They won't starve to death, believe me,
and they will be a little bit more likely to eat form your hand
the next time that you offer them food.

Once you have them to the point that they will eat form your
palm, it is time to teach them to take the food directly from
your finger tips. Simply grasp a pellet, submerge your hand, and
wait untilt he boldest fish approaches. Once he eats the others
will follow. If they don't you know what do to. Justfeed the ones
that will eat from your hand and let the others miss a meal.

Hunger is a great motivator for Koi...

Once you have your Koi eating out of your hands you can alternate
between normal feeding and hand feeding for those times when
you're in a rush and just can't sit down and enjoy your fish.

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Brett Fogle is the owner of MacArthur Water Gardens and several
pond-related websites including macarthurwatergardens.com and
pond-filters-online.com. He also publishes a free monthly
newsletter called PondStuff! with a reader circulation of over
9,000 pond owners. To sign up for the free newsletter and
receive a complimentary 'New Pond Owners Guide' for joining,
just visit MacArthur Water Gardens by clicking the link above.
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Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Brett_Fogle

Fish Health in Hot Summer Heat

2006-09-16T00:01:00.000+07:00

By Brett Fogle
Summer is over, but for many of us - the heat remains.Here a couple of things to do to keep your fish healthyand your pond clear going into winter. First, rememberto keep your pond well aerated. This is very importantto your fish because the pond water actually holds lessoxygen at higher pond temperatures. So if it's stillhot in your part of the country, keep those waterfallsand fountains running! This will keep your pond waterfull of oxygen, and reduce stress on your fish.
If you see your goldfish or KOI gasping at the surface,it's a good sign that you don't have enough dissolvedoxygen in the water, and this can be dangerous.Especially if you have a lot of green water algae inthe pond. This algae can absorb much of the oxygen inthe pond water at night and cause very low dissolvedoxygen levels during the day - which can be deadly tofish!
One thing we recommend this time of year, is to do apartial water change. Drain off 10 - 25% of your totalpond volume, and replace it with fresh, newdechlorinated water. If possible, vacuum or draindecaying organic matter and debris off the bottom toreduce the ponds bio-load.
Your fish will usually be vibrant and playful after awater change. It's like giving them a 'breath of freshair' and invigorates them. Again, we only recommend a10 - 25% water change right now - but feel free toexperiment with whatever works best for your pond.
Remember to re-add your pond salt whenever you drainand add new water. Having a salt water test kit is alsohelpful, or a digital salinity meter, to determineoptimum salt levels.
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Brett Fogle is the owner of MacArthur Water Gardens and several
other pond-related websites includingMacArthurWatergardens.com
and Pond-Filters-Online.com. He also publishes a free monthly
newsletter called PondStuff! with a reader circulation of over
9,000. To sign up for the free newsletter and receive our FREE
'New Pond Owners Guide' visit MacArthur Water Gardens today!
**************************************************
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Brett_Fogle

My First Posting

2006-09-15T17:29:00.000+07:00

This is My First Posting in http://koi-online.blogspot.com hope this blog is usefull for all. thank you very much.