how to keep fish from eating plants

[Stephennj]

I''ve heard alot of horror stories about goldfish/koi eating water lilys. I want to keep both. What is the best way of keeping your fish from destroying water lilys ? remember I'm new here , I have 5 goldfish in an 850 formal pond and hardy waterlilys on the way..,, any tips/pics would be appreciated. steve

 

[fishin4cars]

Goldfish and waterlilies work fine together. Koi a different story. Koi dig, the bigger they get the more they dig. Stopping them from digging is the biggest challenge. Building a basket the allows the lily to come out through the middle but keep the koi out is the best option but can be a little of a challenge to make one that works good and yet doesn't cut the fish up. Another less effective way but it does work is place a layer of rock on the surface of the pot that they koi either don't like, (Lave rock or feather rock) or large stones, (Bigger than they can possibly move). I prefer using lava rock that is a little larger than a golfball. koi usually will leave them alone. For goldfish, I just plant in 8-10" of clay sand mix and put a small layer of pea gravel and it's always worked just fine with almost no muddying up of the water and good plant growth.

 

[HTH]

This is radical me talking.

Koi dig for things to eat in the potted dirt.

If you can manage to grow lilies without dirt the koi have nothing to dig in.

YMMV

 

[addy1]

I have a ton of goldfish/shubunkins and a ton of lilies, they get along just fine. No Koi, one of the reasons I went with no koi, I wanted to have plants in my pond.

 

[Stephennj]

thanks for the replies ! According to the info shared here - this will be a no-brainer for me, i will stick to goldfish only ! Many thanks

 

[j.w]

Me too on just goldfish,mine do a little rooting in the pots w/ cat litter in them but never destroy the lilies. They love Duckweed and Anacharis plants A LOT!

 

[adavisus]

When you vastly outnumber the koi with plants, especially plants that are tough enough to cope with aggressive fish, they stand a chance of surviving what is a normal grazing habit, plants are a healthy part of carp diets

The early delicate foliage on waterlilies are a tempting snack...

Regards, andy
http://www.flickr.com/photos/21940871@N06/
http://swglist.wordpress.com/

 

[mrsclem]

I have my lilies planted in the plastic planters with just stones. The koi kept dumping the pots with dirt or pea gravel. I fastened the plastic fencing that has the large openings on top of the baskets and so far so good. Lilies are up but the roots are safe-

 

[HARO]

This is radical me talking.

Koi dig for things to eat in the potted dirt.

If you can manage to grow lilies without dirt the koi have nothing to dig in.

YMMV

The koi are digging for the roots.... the soil is merely a hindrance!
John