My name is Puffin

[puffin]

Hello, I am Puffin, that is the nickname that my wife Cuddles gave me. I am still rather (extremely) new to ponds. I have one pond that is actually 720ish gallons (nevermind what the bottom says) with three lily plants a waterfall and a bubble fountain. I am having some issues with it right now... if you know how to help, please let me know.
https://www.gardenpondforum.com/2nd-summer-pond-need-help-t8171.html

 

[j.w]

Puffin
Glad for you to be here w/ all of us ponderers

 

[addy1]

Welcome puffin!

 

[CometKeith]

Hi Puffin, Welcome! I just read your other thread. First I would recommend having goldfish since they will coexist with your lilies. Definitely more plants will help reduce the algae. It looks like it probably gets a lot of sun and this is causing your algae to grow so much. You can also try putting potted plants or other things next to the pond that will block the sun. A uv clairfier will remove algae in your water. Living things that eat algae on your pond liner; fish, snails, and tadpoles!

 

[puffin]

Thank you Comet, I will try to add more plants, but where I am at in Bloomington Indiana, most people would not consider having the sort of pond we do, and they don't carry much around me, so I was wondering if I could uproot my two hardy lilies and cut the ball in half and make two lilies or if I would be better off driving the two and a half hours to find a good lily?

Also, would I be ok putting in a couple of goldfish in my pond when I plan on leaving in about 15-17 days for three weeks,or would I expect to come home with floating fishies?

 

[fishin4cars]

welcome aboard Puffin, wait until you return to add fish, you want to be able to check on them daily for the first few weeks after adding to make sure they settle in ok. Don't divide the lily right now let it alone and let it grow, feed it a fert. tablet if you can find them, I'm not a great fan of the ones they sell at lowes and home bdepot but they do help and will help give the lily a boost of growth. If you need more plants and can't find any ask about getting starters from other ponders. May have to pay a little for shipping but you could get some great plants to start.

 

[DrCase]

Welcome to the forum

 

[DrDave]

Welcome to the Forum!

 

[sissy]

hello puffin .and welcome to our group .True they may need fertilizer but in feeding them you will feed algae also ,so be carefull .I got 3 lily's a couple of weeks ago from a pond friend here and put them in a another container for a couple of weeks before putting them in my pond and he forgot to mention he had put 3 fertilizer tabs in each plant and when I put them in the pond they caused a few problems for me

 

[CometKeith]

Hi Puffin, Goldfish can find plenty of food in the pond without you feeding them. Also you don't really want to feed them until the pond cycles because you will get unprocessed ammonia and nitrites from their waste and poor water from the uneaten food. Normally I agree with everything fishin4cars has to offer, but on a 700 gallon pond I don't think a couple small goldfish will hurt things and they might actually help get your cycle started. Don't go for the feeder goldish because they can carry disease. Get a few in the $2-$6 range and have fun with your pond!

 

[fishin4cars]

Adding fish will help cycle the pond for sure, i was suggesting holding off adding fish until the return from the trip just for observation reasons, In case one died Puffin would be there to remove it before it caused any issues.
Adding Plant Fert. tablets, there are pro's and cons, yes the fert. can feed the the Algae, But they can also put the lilies into high gear. It's a trade off, good filter and good maintance can take care of that but then again a lot more plants will help so I agree that that that may add to feeding algae but at the same time may help get more growth in the pond for more stable later on.

 

[addy1]

I use one tab per lily, so far it has not bothered my pond. They are growing like crazy, half the pond covered now in length, all covered in width.

 

[fishin4cars]

That's usually the case in a well established pond. In newer ponds they can cause a algae bloom but once the plants kick in it makes the water crystal clear. I feed 3 tablets every three weeks to my lotus, one tablet per lily every month (6 lilies in the big pond, 3 in the small pond) and the plants use it, both ponds are staying clear and no UV is being used and the water temp today hit 86, starting to worry me that it's getting a little to hot!

 

[addy1]

This heat wave sucks, heat index of 109 today, high of 94 actual. Pond measures at 88 (surface) and it is a nice deep pond.

Plants do make a difference fishin, mine are taking off wonderfully. Still no algae.

 

[fishin4cars]

Wow, I thought it was hot here! 94 with a heat index of 99. That's wild it's that much hotter in Maryland than Louisiana!