Our Pond

Water plants filter the water while supplying food,
shelter and oxygen for the fish. Ponds can be of any shape and size, made from many different materials and designed to coordinate with your landscape. The one shown here has a liner and measures 12 feet wide x 20 feet long, the shallow end is approx. 16 inches deep, the opposite end is approximately  22 inches deep.

In the fall, the fish begin to eat less, their metabolism slows down and they stay closer to the bottom of the pond in the deeper water. The change in their metabolism is normal and they will not require feeding as often or at all during winter as they do in the spring and summer months. If you choose to feed your fish during winter, please be sure to remove any food left uneaten. Allowing it to remain may cause bacteria or other harmful agents in the water which in turn could be life threatening to your fish. So Remember, Keep It Clean! 

Another noteworthy piece of advise is to continue to have at least one fountain or some sort of running water in your pond during cold weather and winter, this is for the safety of your fish and over all well being. Running water will provide oxygen and help rid the water of toxic gasses caused from fish feces and urine along with any left over food that was not removed after feeding.
 

Running water will not freeze solid which will allow the harmful gasses to evaporate through the opening in your pond, Never let you pond completely freeze over and please do not tap, beat or bang on the frozen ice if it does freeze over, this can cause your fish great harm even death.

There are many informative books on the market today that will explain how to build  a pond in your back yard and give excellent advise on how to care for it, what plants are best including how to introduce new fish and how to care for them so check with your local aquatic retailer. Some of the larger plant nurseries carry pond supplies and How-To Books, you can also find them online where you can purchase supplies you will need for keeping your pond clean and your fish happy for many years.
Before building a pond I would recommend reading and learning as much as you can "before"  you start.

Feeding Time

Our fish are fed once in the morning and again in the late afternoon or
evening during the spring and summer.

They would do quite well with only one feeding per day as their diet is supplemented with green vegetation.

I'm often asked about mosquito problem with a pond,
We do not have mosquito problems although mosquito's do lay larva in and around standing water, although not as likely to lay larva in running or moving water and if by chance they do, the fish will eat them right away.
If you are concerned about breeding mosquito's in your pond, there are safe additives you can purchase at any local hardware/home Improvement stores such as Mosquito Donuts, these are completely safe for pets, fish and birds. Use in and around water such as ponds, bird baths, rain gutters. etc.

Read the instructions supplied on any product you are going to use around, near or in your pond before using them.

Dusting plants, shrubs, bushes and trees with pesticides and fertilizers could harm your fish if the wind is blowing, even a slight breeze could cause the pesticide to end up in your pond so we suggest being very careful when using any pesticides or fertilizers (liquids, sprays or dusting powders) and again, we recommend reading the instructions that come with the product.

Come See The Eastern Bluebirds!

The male and female Eastern Bluebird are similar in color with the female being a bit duller. Their song is a soft and melodious warble. Measuring about 7" the Eastern Bluebird habitat ranges from East of the Rockies from southern Canada to the Gulf of Mexico and as far as the mountains of central Mexico.

This is one of my favorite birds.
* "It is a favorite of many people and is eagerly awaited in the spring after a long, cold winter. In places where Bluebird nest-boxes are erected and Starlings and House Sparrows are controlled, up to six pairs of bluebirds will nest on as many acres. In the past 25 years bluebirds have become uncommon in the East for reasons not altogether clear. Competition for nest sites may be a critical factor".

In our garden there are two bluebird houses erected approximately 100 yards from one another. For over 6 years, we've seen the Eastern Bluebirds come to the same two houses to raise their young, unfortunately this year I experienced a sad and heart felt sorrow upon finding one tiny little bluebird that didn't survive. I was so saddened by this, but life does start anew and already we have raised  yet another family of beautiful Eastern Bluebirds.

I look forward each year for the return of our bluebird families, We have taken a few photos of them and have shared them with you. I hope you will enjoy them as much as we do.

A new family of bluebirds for Spring 2005. Both male and female feed and tend to their young. As shown in the first photo, one parent has arrived with food but will sit on top of the box checking things out until he or she feels it's safe to enter. Upon inspecting the nest, we found it to be clean and dry with only one baby bluebird, it's in very good condition, alert, active and as always...hungry!

A bluebird house may be purchased or built, the ones we use are made of cedar, but can also be made of pine or other types of wood as long as they are not painted. Bluebirds need a little rougher surface to hang onto when entering and exiting. The dimensions of the one pictured on the left can be viewed in the larger photo by clicking on the small thumbnail photo on the
left.

We are proud to announce our little Eastern Bluebird has now left it's nest and is doing well. We hope to see him or her return to our nesting box next year to raise a family of it's own.
View the inside of the nesting box (before we cleaned it),  to see how the parents had constructed the nest of pine straw and other nesting materials.