4 Steps to Keeping Your Water Feature Clean this Fall (It's more than just netting!)
An unclean pond in the fall leads to unhealthy fish, unsightly water conditions and lots of string algae in the winter and spring. Don't find yourself in this situation. A little prep work in early fall can save you so much effort during the winter and spring!
4 Steps to Keeping Your Water Feature Clean this Fall
Step One -- Cut back or remove aquatic plants as they become dormant.
As hardy marginal plants start to die back, trim off the dead foliage about 2-3" above the water surface. Remove water hyacinth and water lettuce as they start to brown. (They'll brown up as the water temperature gets cooler.) After the first frost make sure all tropical marginals and floating plants are disposed of. (If you plan to keep your tropical marginal plants, make sure to remove them before the first frost. Read more about that here.) For water lilies, cut back the foliage as deep as you can as it dies back.
As hardy marginal plants start to die back, trim off the dead foliage about 2-3" above the water surface. Remove water hyacinth and water lettuce as they start to brown. (They'll brown up as the water temperature gets cooler.) After the first frost make sure all tropical marginals and floating plants are disposed of. (If you plan to keep your tropical marginal plants, make sure to remove them before the first frost. Read more about that here.) For water lilies, cut back the foliage as deep as you can as it dies back.
Step Two -- Install a leaf net over your pond -- correctly!
This step is so important! A pond full of leaves could be deadly to your fish. The net should be installed in a "domed" manner to keep the leaves from weighing down the net. You can check out our net display at Cool Ponds or watch our netting video.
Step Three -- Keep using beneficial bacteria until the water temperature reaches 35-40 degrees.
Use BioClear and Clean or BioClear Extreme weekly until the water temperature falls below 50 degrees, then switch to our favorite cool water beneficial bacteria which you can find here.
Step Four -- (Optional) Consider a fall pond cleaning.
If your water is cloudy, you have excessive string algae, or a build up on the bottom of your pond, you might consider a fall cleaning of your pond. Many people choose fall as the time they clean their pond rather than spring. You can find our pond cleaning video here if you are a DIY type of person or find out if we are still accepting fall cleaning requests here.
These steps can make spring with your water feature so much easier!
Let's get netting!
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