Summer Vacation and Your Pond
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Article by: Brett Fogle So you've got your summer , How to Build a Fence vacation plans , Before Buying Rose Bushes all made. You've got a checklist to remind you to stop the newspaper delivery, hold your mail, drop the dog off at the kennels, and something else. Something that you're forgetting. Oh yeah, the pond. , 6 Steps To A Greener, Healthier Lawn What are you going to do about the pond? If you're going away for a long weekend then your pond , Avoid Common Gardening Errors won't even miss you. Check your water , Introducting KOI-Cam! levels and make all of other normal tests, feed your fish, , Man Made Puddle and hit the road. However, if you're going away for a longer period, say a week or two, then you'll need to take some extra measures to ensure that your pond , A Touch of Feng Shui in the Garden stays safe , Tips For a Long Lasting Amaryllis and happy and that it doesn't miss you while you're gone. Here's a few more items to add to your vacation checklist: 1. Filter About a week before you pack the kids into the SUV clean all of the mechanical parts of your filter and pumps. , Budget For Your Garden This includes brushes and settlement chambers and all of the pre-filter parts. You want to do this a week in advance so you can keep an eye on the resulting water , Transplanting Trees quality, after the cleaning, to make sure that everything is in balance. 2. Change , Selecting Outdoor Benches your water Dump about 20-30% of the existing pond water , When to Fly Old Glory and replace it with clean and chlorine-free water. , Introducting KOI-Cam! This helps to dilute any build up of nitrates or ammonia. Fill the pond , Budget For Your Garden to the top to compensate for evaporation while you are gone. This is a good time to check your oxygen levels as well as perform all of your other water , Patio Design – Expanding Your Home Outdoors balancing tests. 3. Place , Man Made Puddle a moratorium on new fish This is not the time to add new fish , Planting for Wildlife to your pond. , When to Fly Old Glory You won't be there to monitor their progress and there's no telling what kind of problems you will face when you return. 4. Predator Protection Figure that your heron, raccoon, and other neighborhood predators are going to rush to your pond , Wild Flower Garden - Recreate the Splendor of Nature in Your Own Backyard the moment that your taillights disappear and plan , History of the Adirondack Chair accordingly. If you do not already have natural , Patio Awnings Add to Your Outdoor Fun hiding spots in your pond , Solar Garden Lights then cover it with a secure pond , Creative Ideas For Beautiful Garden Art net that is made especially for this purpose. 5. Feeding If you'll be gone for two weeks or less, feed your fish , Selecting Outdoor Benches their normal amount just prior to leaving and don't worry about it again until you get back. Your average koi , Preserving Dried Flowers- Few Tips for Best Results can get along just fine without being fed for two weeks or less. They'll find plenty of algae and the occasional wayward bug to snack on and their metabolism will adjust quickly to a reduced diet for a short period of time. If you plan , Introducting KOI-Cam! to be gone for a longer time then your only alternatives are either having someone come and feed for you, or getting an automatic fish , Patio Design – Expanding Your Home Outdoors feeder. Fish , Summer Vacation and Your Pond feeders can be expensive, they can break down and stop feeding, and they are also subject to malfunctioning and overfeeding. Your best bet is a friend or neighbor. If you are going to depend on human help make sure that you leave very explicit feeding instructions and tell them not to deviate even a tiny bit. Make sure that they know that overfeeding fish , Garden Pond Liners is not a "treat" and that they could end up killing the fish , Patio Awnings Add to Your Outdoor Fun while trying to do a good deed. Also let them know that if they miss a feeding day not to feed twice as much the next time to make up for it. Now here are some tips , Summer Vacation and Your Pond for when you return: 1. Check to make sure that all of your fish , Growing and Harvesting Dill are present and accounted for and that they all appear healthy. , The Best Types Of Fish For Your Garden Pond 2. Perform all of the usual water , Man Made Puddle tests and adjust anything that is out of balance. 3. Clean your filter and pumps , Types Of Orchids just like you did before you left for vacation. 4. Resume your normal feeding schedule. Owning a pond , Metal Sheds doesn't mean that you have to give up your well-deserved vacation. A little planning and common sense goes a long way.About the Author: Brett Fogle is the owner of MacArthur Water Gardens , Pruning Trees and Shrubs to Enhance Views and several other pond-related websites including www.MacArthurWatergardens.com and www.Pond-Filters-Online.com He also publishes a free monthly newsletter called PondStuff! with a reader circulation of over 9,000. To sign up for the free newsletter and receive our FREE 'New Pond , History of the Adirondack Chair Owners Guide' visit MacArthur Water Gardens , Wild Flower - Recreate the Splendor of Nature in Your Own Backyard today. |
  
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