Hello!

I have a pond (around 1000 gal.??) with one HUGE koi, 3 smaller koi, 2 comets, and a lone fantail. I inherited the pond, fish and all, when I bought my house. There's always been a "green water" issue. Adding a little extra shade helped last summer.

I'd like to have plants in the pond as well, but they eat EVERYTHING! I've tried guards and barriers and they still manage to get at them.

Does anyone know of a plant that they might not be inclined to eat? I'm happy to feed them greens, but I'd like something in the pond that lasts more than a day.

I've also tried a trick that I use on my aquatic turtles. I offered romaine lettuce to the smallest koi who spent the winter inside. He LOVES it! Is there anything wrong with throwing some romaine lettuce in the pond to give them something else to chomp on?

Thanks!

There is no way of keeping the koi from the plants. My water lilies do well, just make sure that when you plant them in pots you cover them with small rocks so that the koi can't up root them. You should also put the plants somewhere other than the fish pond until they've had a chance to root into the dirt.

One thing that you must remember, you have a fish pond. Certainly you can have both, but with koi it is difficult.

It sounds like you have plenty of fish (if not too many). Don't add anymore. Do you know what kind of filtration you have? Pump circulation? Etc...... You need to learn how to test your water, if you don't already. Make sure you test for nitrites, nitrates, ph, salt and oxygen (did I miss one? It's spring you know and we are just now coming out of hibernation LOL). Test once a week. Don't over feed, this can cause water problems that leads to illness.

Good luck with the pond, post some pictures when you can!

Scott

I was really hoping to have plants in there not so much for aesthetics, but to help with the water quality. I don't mind give them greens to nibble - I usually do have a nursery tank (a rubbermaid container outside with a small pump or filter) just so I can get more plants out of the ones I buy.

The pond tends to be my huband's job (he also does plenty of testing) so I can't remember the correct specs on the filters. There are two - one with a UV light and another that is basically a large barrel with bio balls and pads in it. I've been thinking of building my own filter for my turtles (they're my job ) when I get them situated in a pond of their own. If it works, maybe a new one will be in order for the koi pond as well.

I can't believe how much the one little koi likes romaine lettuce! He ignores every plant in the tank if there's even one scrap of lettuce floating around. Perhaps that will work with the rest of the crew. They don't get overfed unless my nephew visits! but they do beg! Maybe the romaine would keep them happy. I guess we'll have to wait and see....

Thanks for the tips!

PS That's some fantastic pond you've got there!

Hey, Scott, good to see you back!
HEeathen, I also have given up on plants in my koi pond, although in one of the ponds, with some smaller plants, the lilies manage to not only live, but also bloom. But thats the rara exception.
What I did when I wanted some green in my pond is either make a separate section where the fish can't reach. I used a 100 gl tub with a big water surface and just 1 ft deep, and had an extra, smaller pump draw water from the pond directly into the tub.
I filled it up with aquatic plants, and through a pipe, about 2 inches "south" of the edge of the tub, it went back into the pond. That tub sat on the rim of my pond, above the pond's water level.
Or you can try the Papyrus plant, they come in giant, regular and dwarf sizes. Those are sitting in my pond on a concrete block, and are amazingly one of the few plants that the fish don't try to munch down. It does have something to do with the fact that that particular plant's leaves grow straight up in the sky, and only about 5 inches of stem are actually in the water.