Autumn Koi And Goldfish Pond Maintenance

Autumn Koi And Goldfish Pond Maintenance

Autumn Pond Maintenance: Preparing Your Fishpond for Winter

As autumn arrives and temperatures drop, it’s the perfect time to give your fishpond the care it needs to thrive through the winter months. Regular pond maintenance will ensure your pond stays in top condition.

1. Prevent Leaves and Debris

To avoid excess debris from falling into your pond, consider these solutions:

• Use a pond cover net to catch leaves and debris.
• Install a floating skimmer for automatic debris removal.
• Manually skim the pond with a skimmer net if you’re nearby.

Removing debris before it sinks is crucial to avoid water quality issues and potential fish health problems.

2. Clear Dead Pond Plants

As pond plants die back during autumn, be sure to remove dead material. This prevents it from sinking to the bottom and decaying, which can reduce water quality. If waste has already settled, you can use a pond vacuum to remove it.

3. Adjust Fish Feeding

Fishes metabolisms alters with the pond water temperature, so does the nutrient requirement of the fish. If the temperature drops and the fishes metabolism slows down then any food left in their digestive system will remain there and could start to literally rot inside them. Feeding fish during the winter months can therefore be a very tricky business. If you choose to feed your fish you must be confident that the water temperature will remain suitably warm enough for several days. You should use Wheatgerm foods, which are specifically designed to meet the fishes requirements at this time of year. If you are in any doubt it is better not to feed.