|
Water Garden Maintenance: Spring Clean-out
 The
spring rains fill streams and rivers, which in turn flush out the lakes
and ponds.This is nature’s way of preparing for a new season of
life.Your man-made pond needs your help in order to duplicate this same
process.
The Early Spring Cleanout:
By replenishing the water in your pond, and giving it a good cleaning
at the beginning of each season, your pond can begin each new season fresh.
Early spring, before your pond awakens completely from its winter dormancy,
is the best time of year to perform your cleanout. Ideally, the cleanout
should take place before the water temperature creeps above 55ºF.
As long as your water is cooler than 55ºF, the beneficial bacteria
that grow in your filter and on your rocks will not yet be established.
If a cleanout is done after bacteria colonies form, your ecosystem will
be thrown out of balance and your pond will go through a “green
phase” before your bacteria colonies reestablish themselves again.
If a contractor installed your pond, they’ll almost certainly offer
a spring cleanout service. So, if you don’t want to tackle this
project yourself, you would likely be able to hire them to do it for you.On
the other hand, if you’ve built your water garden yourself, or you’re
just looking forward to kicking off another pond season yourself, plan
on spending an afternoon to complete this project.
Limiting Fish Stress:
Spring cleanouts should be performed start to finish on the same day.
Fish should not be left outside the pond in a holding container in full
sun for longer than a few hours. Fish are weak after a long winter, but
they’ll do just fine if you limit the stress of a cleanout by completing
it in a timely fashion.
What you'll need to clean out your pond:
- Kiddie pool (or large container to hold fish and frogs)
- Fish net
- Two-five gallon buckets to collect leaves and debris
- Wading boots or old clothes you don’t mind getting dirty
- Rubber gloves
- 25’ of 15 - 2 inch discharge piping
- The pump from your skimmer with a makeshift screen of chicken wire or
similar material
- A high-pressure nozzle for your garden hose or a power washer
- Garden shears for trimming plants
STEP-by-STEP Clean-out Guide
|
