Birds and Bees in the Koi Garden

We have had many visitors to the Koi Garden so far this year.  Many family members have visited us and stopped by to see the happenings. 

But we have also had visitors of a smaller variety:  The Birds and the Bees have come to the Koi Garden; literally!!!!

One of the later additions in the last few years has been a very nice “Goldenchain” tree (Laburnum).  While not a tree that normally is found in Japanese or Chinese gardens, I just love the cascading flowers every Spring.  It makes for nice photos, both close up and further away.  And with all those flowers, the trees have become magnets for both Bumble Bees and Hummingbirds.  Both of these are welcome visitors!!!

Another of the visitors has set up residence.  A small bird has moved into one of the bird houses built from license plates.   The bird house was placed behind the Goldenchain tree and close by both water and bird feeders;  a pretty smart bird!!!  While we have heard no chirping coming from the bird house yet, there is quite a lot of movement in and out, with one bird bringing lots of food in.  I am speculating that his partner is in the house tending to the eggs.  I will keep you informed re and new inhabitants of the Koi Garden in upcoming weeks.

Grave robbers in the Koi Garden

Last week I posted about the death of one of my fish in the Koi Garden; a nice Kumonru named Rhu.

After a quick burial in the garden, I thought that would be the end of it.  Apparently my nemesis thought otherwise.  Within a day the fish was dug up and removed, with nothing left but the disrupted soil.  Hmmm, not exactly the neighborly actions one would expect and hope for in the Koi Garden. 

A quick perusal of the surrounding areas yielded no remains as might be expected with say a cat or possibly a squirrel.  And while I didn’t look at any front porches around the neighborhood, I have heard of no reports of any “gifts” for their owners from any cats, either. 

No, I think that this is the work of my nemesis from the past, the Raccoon.  It might even be a family affair as it was in the past.  In the past it was the plums and pears, now it is the fish. 

For new readers, the Koi Garden has always had issues with this Raccoon and his ilk in the past.  They had wreaked havoc on the lilies and sword plants.  They also had a penchant for playing with anything floating in the pond.  They loved the glass floats we have and had a special game they played with the floating thermometer.  They must have really liked the thermometer as I am sure they stole it for their own nefarious needs.  We now use a plastic screen to keep them away from the pond fish and the plants, at least early in the spring when the Raccoons are setting up their circuit that they use for the summer. 

Nope, this is just an escalation of the ongoing war I am having with my nemesis, the Raccoon.  I am thinking that he was just cruising by seeing if we had forgotten to place the screen for the night, and smelled the deceased fish.  I bet he/they scooped up the fish and headed off, probably to their local Raccoon eatery….

A death in the Koi Garden

Spring is a risky time in the Koi Garden.  The water temperature rises and with that, so does the risks for the fish.  While rising temperatures allow internal immune systems to take hold, it also allows viruses and harmful bacteria to grow and flourish as well.  In some cases the harmful bacteria grows faster than the fish’s ability to fight them.  This can lead to diseases and even quick deaths.

This is what has happened to some favorites in the Koi Garden.  Rhu, a great looking Kumonru died very quickly this week.  One morning he was found dead in the pond. Cause unknown.  Call it Spring Fever.   A great loss. Rhu was introduced to our readers in previous posts and will he will be missed.

When dead fish are found in the pond it is very important to remove the fish very quickly to reduce the chance of any disease transferring to the other fish.  A detailed review and analysis of the dead fish must be made to get some idea of the problem.   Do not touch the fish with bare hands.  Gloves should be worn; gardening gloves work well for this task; and they should be thoroughly washed afterward.  The fins should be checked for any problems like fin rot, ich, or any other malady.  Pry open the gills; the color should be a nice reddish, pink color.  The gills should be complete and healthy looking.  If the gills are damaged in any way, it could be an indication of the disease that the fish succumbed to.   It is also very important to test the water as well.  Watch out for high levels of Ammonia and Nitrites.  They can stress the fish and extended periods of stress can cause death.

This is the time where good reference materials are a must.  In previous posts, I have talked about a favorite book of mine.  In my gift recommendations I have talked about a few good books that could be a great help.  This is the time to talk to your Koi gardens friends.  In the Koi Garden one great resource I have is Oasis Water Gardens.  Diane Torgenson is a great source of assistance to any problems I might have.

In the case of Rhu, it might be of interest that the fish did change color.  It was almost not possible to recognize Rhu.  Readers might remember that a Kumonru is a fish that can change color based on temperature, water chemicals, and other factors.  When I pulled Rhu out of the pond he had a lot larger amount of red coloring, far more than he normally had.

Rhu was placed to rest with a burial in a corner of the Koi garden.  It is the same area where I have placed other fish that have died in the past.   While I never like to lose fish, having them give nutrients and growth to a nice Hydrangea is at least something positive out of the whole thing.

Skagit Valley Tulip Festival

I visited a different type of garden this weekend.  No, not really a Koi Garden type garden, but a grand garden, just the same.  The type of garden that you might take a helicopter to see completely…. 

The Skagit Valley Tulip Festival is that type of garden (show) (http://www.tulipfestival.org/).  It goes on every year for the month of April in Mount Vernon and the surrounding areas.  There are fields and fields of colorful Tulips.  It is really quite impressive.  Now Tulips are not the type of flowers that you might normally find in a Koi Garden but colorful they definitely are!  Here are some photos.  Enjoy!!!

 This festival is based on working farms.  These are businesses that sell all these Tulips during the month.  In fact, most of the Tulips have already been harvested.  Therefore put off that helicopter tour 'til next year...

I will take fish food with that warm water

Despite what the calendar says, it’s time for the fish to wake up.   They are waking up on their own, and they are hungry.  Watching the Koi is a good indicator that it might be getting close to the time to start feeding them a low protein food again, but really, its not like the fish stop shivering or put up a sign saying “Feed me!!!”.

I use water temperature as the final guide.  Over the holidays, you may remember I got one of these nifty remote temperature gauges, so I can plan out my Koi Garden days from the warmth of my house.  Nice....  Once the temperature starts getting higher than 50 degrees F, for extended periods of time, the fish will be able to digest the food they eat.  The fish’s immune system also turns on by that time and helps the fish fight the waking bad bacteria and diseases.   The increasing temperatures also allow the beneficial bacteria of the filters to start the Nitrogen cycle.

With all this happening, it is a risky time for the fish, plus I have not even mentioned my personal war with the Raccoon, but again I digress.  In a normal spring, the temperature gradually increases over 50, with multiple dips back into the 40s and even 30s.  I think this stresses the fish and increases the risk of sickness.  Therefore, in the Koi Garden, I try to reduce the risk with the help of an aquarium thermometer which is placed in the external filter assembly.  This has heated the water flowing from the filter to the pond and reduced the fluctuations in the water temperature, especially when the temperature drops below 50 degrees F. 

The heater should also allow the beneficial bacteria to take root and begin to do their job cleaning the water at the earliest possible time.  At the same time, I have also turned off the UV sterilizing filter, to make sure the beneficial bacteria have a fighting chance.  At this time, I am going to put up with green water if it means the filters get started correctly.  Better to have a healthy Koi that I cannot see due to green water than an unhealthy Koi clearly visible in the bottom of the pond…..

Testing the water chemicals during this timeframe is very important as things can change within days.  In the Koi Garden the Ammonia and Nitrite levels have not been too high yet, but if they do rise above safe levels, water changes may be necessary.  I will keep my eyes on this in the future.

Pea Soup anyone?

Every spring it comes. And every spring we come up with more tools to fight it. That green, algae filled water that restricts us from seeing the beautiful fish we pamper so much.

I have a nice UV light that will sterilize the water and keep the single cell algae in check very well. The UV light is positioned in the pond in between the in pool filter and the large exterior filter. The UV light is positioned so that only half of the water going to the filter goes through the UV filter, the rest goes directly to the exterior filter. This setup guarantees that the UV light will not sterilize all the water and kill all the bacteria in the water and the filters.

I do not have the filter on all year. I leave the UV light off for the winter and the beginning of the spring. I didn’t want to do anything to reduce the amount of beneficial bacteria in the water until the bacteria filters are up and running. I don’t mind green water for the beginning of the warmer season.

Green water in itself is not an indication of a problem. It could just be that your biological filter is not functioning yet. It is however, very important that you check the water often. You should check for Ammonia, Nitrates and Nitrites. It is also important to check the water PH level; it should be between 7 and 8. Also make sure that the Oxygen levels of the water are high. If you have lowered your waterfalls for the winter, it is time to increase the flow and oxygenation. I think that you should also turn on any Venturi tubes you may have in your pond to get the frothy Oxygen flows.

If any of the measurements are too high, you should remove 1/4 or 1/3 of the water and replace it with new water. Please note that if you do use salt, check and adjust your salt amount after you make any additions of new water.

Spring Photos

Spring is a great time to look over your fish to make sure no problems have taken root over the winter. While the water gets green very early, you can see your fish well enough. You can also take some nice photos of your fish.

Digital photography allows for modifications that are truly amazing.

Picasa (free from Google.com) has functionality that allow you to modify your photos. In addition to the obvious cropping and straightening, you can adjust the contrast, color, and general lightness of the photo.

Within Picasa, there are three buttons that are quite useful, especially for those new to digital photography. The “I’m feeling lucky” button, the “Auto contrast” button and the “Auto color” produce powerful results.

The “I’m feeling lucky” button reviews the picture and makes changes to the lighting and the colors within the picture. It truly makes some very good improvements. The “Auto contrast” button makes similar changes to the contrast within the digital photo. The “Auto color” adjusts the color to make up for any weaknesses in the color representation. I make use of those three buttons frequently. These pictures have been improved with the use of those buttons.