the web address is:

www.picturetrail.com/Debi0825

Thanks for the great welcome. I think I'm going to really enjoy this place. Have a great day everyone.

BY ALL MEANS! I LOOOOOVVVEE to peek at other people's fishes and ponds and pools and tanks! They are sooo exciting.

Hi Debi

Nice! Are the two sides of the pond connected? Or are they separate?

They are connect by a waterfall in between. The area where the duck sits is my filter. The water is cycled constantly to keep it crystal clear.

Drool

Lovely!

Very pretty and your fish are beautiful. How many gallons is your pond and how many fish are in it?

750 gallons and at last count I had approximately 36 fish in various shapes and sizes along with 3 Brown Apple Snails, 3 Golden Apple Snails (with babies hatching in an aquarium in my house) and various pond snails.

I also have Crawfish which keep it really clean and tadpoles that have since turned into frogs.

I love it.

Debi

Crawfish - never heard of that. They help keep it clean? I put a filter and gravel in mine and it keeps the water clear but there is a lot of "stuff" of the bottom that I wish wasn't there. I've always heard you don't want to introduce snails because they reproduce like mad - is this true? I love the frogs too - but some don't.

Let's put it this way...I had a frog die in the bottom of the pond and the crawfish picked him clean. All that was left were bones. They are scavengers and do a great job of eating and garbage that falls into the bottom. This includes leaves, fish poop, etc. Anything that rots.

As for the snails...They will reproduce as long as their is enough food supply. Your everyday brown pond snails will reproduce like crazy. They are asexual and lay their eggs in just about any plant slightly above the water line. Apple snails need a mate and lay their eggs several inches above the water (the babies will drowm if below water until they hatch). Even with all the eggs the apple snails lay, usually only about 10 will hatch and then if I don't hatch them inside a fish tank, the fish will eat them.

I prefer the apple snails as they get much bigger and do a much better job on algea. Plus they can come in so many varities and colors. As far as I know so far from my babies, the goldens have kept to themselves. Now the brown will mate with the goldens but I don't think they have. Eggs take 3-4 weeks to hatch depending on temperature. I have another batch to move into the aqarium next week. I just had 4 hatch last week.

Debi

Can't say I didn't learn anything today! I think what I heard was about the little brown snails. Are crawfish the same thing as crawdads? Little lobsters??

Crawfish are the same as crawdads, but not the same as baby lobster. I get mine at Bait shops for like $2.00 for a dozen. I just have to make sure that they are rather large as some of my Koi will eat the as soon as I drop them in the pond if they are small enough.

Probably more information than you wanted on the snails...sorry. I have done so much reasearch on the pond in two years that it isn't funny. The snails are about the only thing that really conrols my algea. I didn't want to use any of the chemicals that are out there since many that control the algea also get rid of the oxygen which in turn will kill my poor fish.

I don't like chemicals either. I just use the filter and gravel - but like I said I am getting "stuff" on the bottom. It is green "fluffy" stuff, not growing on the side, just like of laying there. Not sure what it is - but would like to get rid of it. Do the snails live through the winter? You did say your pond was pretty deep - 4 foot right? Mine is only 2 ft. I need a giant cleaner to suck the stuff out of the gravel!

Snails would get the algea off the bottom (so would crawfish) but the snails won't survive the winter. Most snails don't do well below 40 degrees. I did have crawfish survive last winter in my shallower pond (18 to 24 inches). I'll be moving the apple snails inside with all the fish this year. I'll just have to do major population control

BTW...do you have pictures of your pond some where? I love looking at other's ponds.

:goldfish

My avatar is one pic of my pond. I don't know how to post any of the other picutres. But I have lots of them - can you tell me how?

Gee what kind of set up do you have inside to keep all of those fish in the house in the winter! Do you live in the trailer in the picture?

I have several 100 gallon rubbermaid feeding troughs in the basement along with grow lights for the plants that will be on a timer. That way I can keep them along with the sun cycle in the north. It is just too hard to keep the ice open in the pond.

I'll be moving some of my plants in with them along with the snails and my small filter (which is the fountain in the pictures).

The trailer belongs to a little old lady that we keep track of. The camper is my mom and dad's. They live in it up here in the summer but have a house in Florida for the winter with a pond. So some of my plants go back and forth.

To post pictures of the pond I just opened an account with picturetrail.com (it's free) and then uploaded them. Your pond looks beautiful. How many fish?

Wow - sounds like a lot of trouble. Mine stay in the pond year round. Right now I have 4 GF, 1 Shubunkin, 1 Koi, 2 Black Moors. I had over 30 - but most of them died on me this summer. I went to the pet store and looked at some at lunch but didn't see anything the really caught my eye. They said they are not getting much in this time of the year. I'll try to get my pictures posted so everyone can see them. Thanks!

http://www.picturetrail.com/gallery/view?p...47&gid=2639315&

I posted this at the member picture spot too.

I love your pond. I see you have many water lillies. I have them but the Oranda's eat them as fast as the leaves pop up. I can't put them in the side with the Koi because then the Koi mess around in the dirt. I've never gotten flowers on them either because they don't get enough direct sunlight.

I had orignally only wanted something that size but then I caught the bug and ended up with what I have now.

It is about 500 gallons - give or take a few. My plants don't look as good this year because I repotted them all, but they will take off next year I hope. I put gravel in top of all my pots to keep the fish out of them - so far it works.

Man your pond is so cool. Me and my draughter just loved it. I am planning my next pond this coming spring. I have two right now one has shabukans and the big one has oranda in it. My little girl want to say someting to you. the little pond is coming soon so have a good week at work. She has plans to make a little of her own out a planter.

Lynn, thank you. The pond is a lot of hard work. We got all the rocks from an old farmhouse foundation in back of our house. The lower side was done in year 1 and then the biger side in year two. Last year we added the huge bio filter.

Good luck with your ponds.

You guys will be happy to know that I have talked Michelle out of Making a pond of her own. She is happy with the fish tank for now. Kids can come up with the cutest ideas.