Pond Maintenance in the Spring

In Spring, the water begins to warm and we can see the pond beginning to come back to life. This is an important time to get the pond going in the right direction for a rewarding season.

• Un-winterize the pond. Anything that you had done to prepare for winter can be undone once freezing weather has passed. For example, if you turned your pump off, it can go back on.
• When the water tempature consistantly reaches 50 degrees you may begin feeding the fish. Feed low temp fish food until the water temperature reaches 60 degrees at which point you can move to your full season feeding program.
  
  If there has been an accumulation of leaves and other debris over the winter you should remove this immediately. Leaves can be removed with a skimmer type net that has a square end which allows you to push it across the bottom of the pond scooping up all of the leaves.
  
  You can also use a pond vacuum to remove the leaves and sludge from the bottom of the pond.  A shop vac might also do the trick but this removes a tremendous amount of water in the process and may not be the best choice. If there are many leaves and sludge accumulated in the pond to the point that you cannot remove them easily a complete pond cleaning may be necessary and essential in order to properly clean the pond. If you choose to do a complete cleaning because you feel that is your only option then you should know that it will upset the balance of the pond and actually interfere with algae control.  However if you do take this route then you should use the following method:
• Pump the water from the pond into a large tub or another large container. The exact size of the container will depend on the number and size of the fish that you have but it should be as large as possible.
  
  It may be necessary to cover the container with a leaf netting or something similar in order to keep the fish from jumping out especially if you have koi fish. If it is warm outside than the container should be kept in the shade.
  
  Continue pumping the water out of the pond until it only covers the fish. Use a fish net to catch the fish and place them in the container with the water that has just been pumped from the pond.  The plants can be removed as well if repotting is necessary or if they are being left in the pond. If you choose to remove them then they should be kept in the shade and covered with damp newspaper. If you are dealing with underwater plants then they should be kept in a container of water.

After you pump as much water out of the pond as you can, you will want to use a shop vac or dustpan and broom with a bucket to finish  removing the sludge from the bottom and sides of the pond. Do not try to scrub the velvet type algae that may coat the liner as this is beneficial to the pond. It is extremely important to not use any chemicals during this process.

After the pond is clean you can pump the water with the fish back into the pond and then put the fish in the pond as well. Add a dechlorinator to remove the chlorine and slowly add water from the hose to finish filling the pond back to its original state. During the filling process you may place the plants back in the pond.

• Fertilize each plant and place them at their appropriate depth. Lilies and Lotus' should be fertilized every 3 to 4 weeks and Marginal’s every 5 to 7 weeks.
• Add new plants to your pond as you see fit and as the weather becomes appropriate for each plant.  You can also add floaters such as water hyacinth which are usually done in the late spring after the danger of frost has passed.
• Turn on the UV lights after the biological filter is working properly and the water starts to turn slightly green.
• Continue using as directed for the best filter performance possible.  Aquaclearer is a great way to get bacterial colonies restarted quickly on mat-type filter media.
• Divide and repot plants as needed.
• Begin cleaning your filter as you see fit. Ponds with a skimmer or other pre-filters will need the skimmer/pre-filter cleaned frequently. On average at least once a week but in some cases you may need to clean them more and on the other hand others may be able to go a month in between cleanings. If this filter is primarily mechanical (physically traps debris) and you also have a biological filter, then it is ok to hose off the pre-filter media. Your biological filter needs to only be cleaned when the flow of water is being restricted due to accumulation of debris. When cleaning a biological filter do NOT over-clean, this can actually cause more damage then good.  It is only necessary to remove the debris that is restricting the flow. Over-cleaning the filter can destroy the bacteria that has colonized on the media and if at all possible, avoid chlorinated water.