Your Water Garden Guide: Eight Steps for April
Roll up your sleeves... it's time to get that water feature back in shape!
Isn't April a magical month? For those of us who experience the full force of four seasons, I think April is the most transformative month. We start out with a few plants trying to make an appearance and end the month with so many blooming, beautiful specimens... Achoo! Yes, we have the pollen as well!
April is the month to really get your water feature off to a good start for the year. Any maintenance done this month, will help so much to lessen summer maintenance.
Here are 8 steps you need to get your water feature going in the right direction:
Step One: Determine if you need a spring cleaning.
Not every water feature will need to be cleaned each year -- every pond is different. A heavy muck layer or leaves in the bottom, cloudy water, a large fish load -- these are all reasons you should clean your water feature. And when I say clean, I mean drain all the water and remove the muck at the bottom. You can read more about deciding if your pond needs cleaned here.
If you decide your pond does need to be cleaned, we can help! Find out more about Cool Ponds' professional pond cleaning service or watch our video to see how to clean it yourself.
BioClear and Clean
Step Two: Begin your water treatment regimen.
To keep your water feature at its best, please develop a regular treatment regimen. This doesn't have to be difficult. Choose a day... either once a week or every other week and make it happen. It will only take 5 minutes and your water feature will be so much better for it!
Here are the main treatments we recommend (these are the treatments we use in our display features and at home): BioClear and Clean, Remove Away Plus, Muck Off, and BioClear Extreme (BioClear Extreme is for existing green water issues)
You can find all these products in our online store or actual storefront.
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Aquatic Fertilizer Capsules
Step Three: Divide and fertilize aquatic plants
If you are cleaning your pond, then most definitely divide your water lilies and get them repotted. For best results with lilies, make sure they are in a fabric bag with a draw string. Lilies can get really carried away and take over the pond if you let them. Keep them contained and it will be much better in the long run.
If you have some shallow water or marginal plants that have outgrown their space, now is a great time to trim them back as well. Either pull out part of the plant (make sure to get the root), or use a sharp knife to cut back the plant roots. BE CAREFUL -- you don't want to cut or nick the liner.
We like to use once-a-year aquatic fertilizer for our pond plants. We fertilize once in the spring and then let it do its thing the rest of the growing season. We like this fertilizer capsule, but we have other types of fertilizer on our website also.
Check out our video about dividing and fertilizing water lilies.
Step Four: Clean filters and pump
Even if you aren't going to clean your water feature, it's a good idea to clean any filters in the water feature and take out your pump and give it a good cleaning. To clean your pump, check for any debris in the impeller that needs to be removed and spray it down thoroughly with the hose. If you live in any area with hard water, it's not a bad idea to soak the pump in straight vinegar for a few hours also.
If you can pull on your filter media and it tears or comes apart, now is the time to replace it as well.
Spring and Fall Fish Food
Step Four: Check fish supplies
If you feed your fish, make sure you are using a high protein fish food. The protein content should be 38% or greater. Fish food left from last year should be thrown out unless it was stored in a refrigerator or cold shed or garage. Remember you don't have to feed your fish! There are lots of things for them to eat in the pond without our help. If you do feed your fish, only feed them a few times a week and only what they will eat in a couple minutes. If you find fish food in your filter -- that's too much!!!
Also make sure you have dechlorinator on hand. We have all done it -- we put the hose in the pond and forget. Adding dechlorinator every time you add water is a cheap and easy way to help your fish.
Make sure you have a pond thermometer. You will want to wait to feed your fish until the water temperature is sustained above 55 degrees.
Aerator Maintenance
Step Five: Make sure your aerator is working effectively
Aeration is the number one best thing you can do for your water feature (if you have a pond). Everything works, lives, functions, and looks better with supplemental oxygen. We add aerators to all our ponds we install. An aerator will super charge the beneficial bacteria in your pond to keep it cleaner and healthier. Spring is a good time to make sure all the parts are working... the air diffusers, the diaphragms, etc. All the parts of the aerator (at least our aerators) are made to be replaced so the aerator will last a long time! Check out our Aerator Maintenance Guide.
Step Six: Spiff up around the water feature
Now is the time to cover any exposed liner or re-mulch the area around the water feature. Especially after spring rains, it's best to cover any dirt areas to keep dirt from leaching in and clouding your water. Remember to use undyed mulches around the pond. Dyed mulch can cause the water to turn the color of the mulch. We use and recommend Greendell Forrest Fines mulch which can be found here in Indiana and Michigan.
Step Seven: Get some new plants, new fish, or an update
Spring is a great time to add on or upgrade. Stop in Cool Ponds after May 1 to see our great selection of aquatic plants and fish. Need an update to your water feature? We would love to discuss your plans! Contact us -- CoolPonds.Net.
Step Eight: Get Out There and Enjoy!
Remember why you have your water feature? Take some time and enjoy it!
Need more spring advice? We love to help!
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