byron 1,169 Posted July 5, 2006 Report Share Posted July 5, 2006 Brilliant, thanks for that. Is this it... Ill def keep my eyes open for it. Ive been to the local pond and got a bucket of jet black stagnate water with the cress stuff etc in it. Hopefully this should have some pond life i need to get going. MOLL. thats the stuff. they fold the leaves back and lay a egg in between. last summer i moved house and the new owners were going to fill pond in; so i caught about hundred and fifty up; young and old; and released them not far from were i live now. i found that when i first put then in my pond must be nearly twenty years ago they never returned for a couple of years .good luck. wildlife needs as much help as possible Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest MOLLY Posted July 5, 2006 Report Share Posted July 5, 2006 good luck. wildlife needs as much help as possible Thank you...I agree, thats why i dont want koi etc, would prefer something native and natural. MOLL. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
byron 1,169 Posted July 5, 2006 Report Share Posted July 5, 2006 good luck. wildlife needs as much help as possible Thank you...I agree, thats why i dont want koi etc, would prefer something native and natural. MOLL. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
J Darcy 5,871 Posted July 5, 2006 Report Share Posted July 5, 2006 Any fish other than bottom feeders , eg gudgeon, loach, will eat newt larvae...stickle backs are the worst fish for this... they are b*****ds! Ducklweed is no good for your pond as it will take over the full surface and block out all the light penetrating into the water...stopping true oxygenating water plants thriving and also hindering amphibian larvae development.........Dont worry about plants getting accustomed..you will spend the first year putting them in and the rest of your life trying to get on top of their invasive spread!!! lol Newts like a bit of clear water... especially the great crested ones.... ...no need to worry about herons IMHO, as soon as they realise theres no goldfish they wont hang around.........remember fish and newts do not mix... and i would rather have the newts..theres nothing better than hand feeding the Great crested in your own pond i can tell thee....... watching them court, spawn andwatch the larvae grow into something that is beautiful........................ Also...dont worry about food Moll...they will find there own.... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest MOLLY Posted July 6, 2006 Report Share Posted July 6, 2006 Brilliant...thank you very much. So no stickleback then, any ideas on what kind of broad leaved plants, where they should be in or next to the pond etc. The best kind of oxegenating plants for the pond and where should this bleedin log pile be Now its easy to get toads and frogs into the pond, i can collect the spawn next spring and i know i already have toads in the garden...how do i get newts there? Just wait for them or bring them in. MOLL. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
J Darcy 5,871 Posted July 6, 2006 Report Share Posted July 6, 2006 If your down my neck of the woods next april or may i can sort the newts out.....log piles do not have to be next to the water, in fact, IMHO there is more chance of the next using them if they are situated AWAY from the water....dont try and look for the newts once they are hibernating cos they are very hard to see, turning into a "blob"...Newts can travel a very long distance away . Piles of rubble are also a good hibernacular for them too even though its not native, the canadian pond weed is excellent for oxygen....other than that i dont think the plants matter really what you put in.... Not an expert, JMHO.....my pond has duckweed, and i wish it didnt...... get out a little "fishing net" and re-live your youth fishing for creepy-crawlies in the local ponds..... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest MOLLY Posted July 6, 2006 Report Share Posted July 6, 2006 Brilliant, brilliant, thank you. Plenty of rubble, i built a rockery out of it and there are dry stone walls all around......ill move the bleedin log pile now then :wacko: get out a little "fishing net" and re-live your youth fishing for creepy-crawlies in the local ponds Cant wait MOLL. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest MOLLY Posted July 6, 2006 Report Share Posted July 6, 2006 Been thinking! If i remove as much of the water as possible from the pond, and let it dry out, will the watercress/duckweed die? MOLL. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest wickidweasel Posted July 6, 2006 Report Share Posted July 6, 2006 I wouldnt worry about the duckweed just net it out when it gets too much it will help remove waste from the water and a lot of wildlife will feed on it etc . If your not keeping fish theres no need to worry otherwise you would have to watch the amount of plantlife in the pond as it absorbs oxygen at night. I would also remove some rocks along an area of your pond and turf into it to make easy access Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Tommy Gunn 0 Posted July 7, 2006 Report Share Posted July 7, 2006 As long as the logs are near by (a few yards) it should be OK. We have Fish (ghost carp and goldfish) they breed naturally and are 6th or 7th generation by now and not all the goldfish are now golden, it is the feed that brings out the bright colours otherwise a lot of them are now brown and we also still have a thriving newt and amphibian colony. With the duck weed remove some as required that's what we do. It has a habit of turning up anyway on the new frogs/ toads etc as they arrive from other ponds. Emptying the pond will not help as it will come back to life even when it has been dry and crispy. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
J Darcy 5,871 Posted July 7, 2006 Report Share Posted July 7, 2006 As long as the logs are near by (a few yards) it should be OK.We have Fish (ghost carp and goldfish) they breed naturally and are 6th or 7th generation by now and not all the goldfish are now golden, it is the feed that brings out the bright colours otherwise a lot of them are now brown and we also still have a thriving newt and amphibian colony. With the duck weed remove some as required that's what we do. It has a habit of turning up anyway on the new frogs/ toads etc as they arrive from other ponds. Emptying the pond will not help as it will come back to life even when it has been dry and crispy. I dont think its the feed mate that makes them golden, cos that is how they are born. When gold fish are bred they only have a % of "orange" young, the rest revert back to their natural colour which is brown , like the colouring of normal carp....... you cannot colour feed a "brown" goldfish into an "orange" goldfish, from what i can gather....IMHO>... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Nov Posted July 8, 2006 Report Share Posted July 8, 2006 Molly, this rollacoster ride to get your pond into shape, would make a great article once completed, as its been good reading in thread form. I will bookmark this thread as I need to relocate the pond in my garden, I foolishly placed it under two trees that both blossom . Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest MOLLY Posted July 17, 2006 Report Share Posted July 17, 2006 i can imagine what that garden will be looking like next summer, Slowly but surely. I got Millet to take some ariel shots from the roof so i can plan it. Cant wait till the lawns are all finished but yet enjoying the doing of it still. The piccies make it look tiny and as if hardly anything has been done, but you have to use the wheelbarrow and chair to put it into perspective in your head. Nov, Ive got woodland 2 sides, large trees shading the pond. Im just gonna try to get into the habit everytime i go into the garden in the mornings take the net with me and scoop out the debris. Got some yellow and some blue water iris from the pond at the allotments. Its teeming with larve and little water insects now already MOLL. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest wickidweasel Posted July 17, 2006 Report Share Posted July 17, 2006 Looking good Moll ive enjoyed watching your garden progress Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bullsmilk 2 Posted July 17, 2006 Report Share Posted July 17, 2006 As long as the logs are near by (a few yards) it should be OK. We have Fish (ghost carp and goldfish) they breed naturally and are 6th or 7th generation by now and not all the goldfish are now golden, it is the feed that brings out the bright colours otherwise a lot of them are now brown and we also still have a thriving newt and amphibian colony. With the duck weed remove some as required that's what we do. It has a habit of turning up anyway on the new frogs/ toads etc as they arrive from other ponds. Emptying the pond will not help as it will come back to life even when it has been dry and crispy. I dont think its the feed mate that makes them golden, cos that is how they are born. When gold fish are bred they only have a % of "orange" young, the rest revert back to their natural colour which is brown , like the colouring of normal carp....... you cannot colour feed a "brown" goldfish into an "orange" goldfish, from what i can gather....IMHO>... spot on darcy but a point worth saying is alot of goldfish are born black and then can turn verying degrese of black to red to gold and gold to white once white they cant change back Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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