Garden Whipping! - Updated: pg21

[Whitewater]

Catalina, wow, what an inspiration! Well, maybe not the snow But you're not responsible for that! LOL! I live in MN too (St Paul) and your garden makes me want to figure out what we can do with our little plot of land!

Do you mind if I ask a question? Actually, a couple questions! How do you overwinter your fish in the pond? I was always told that a shallow (ie, less than 6' deep) pond would freeze solid in our winters and kill the fish.

Even if you didn't have any fish, how did you keep your pond set-up from freezing and cracking and so on? Did you winterize everything? Or did you somehow try to keep it running?

Hubby wants a water feature in our back yard and I haven't been too thrilled with the idea -- though I think it's great in theory -- mostly because I can't figure out how to make it work out here, when we're a frozen wasteland most of the year. And I'm the one who's going to be taking care of it and putting it in and so on, he works an 80 hour work week for the foreseeable future, so *I* need to know how much work a pond/water feature really is!

You made it look easy, though I'm sure there's a ton of work and process and so on that you didn't show and didn't talk about! We wouldn't be able to have as big a pond (we'd have to go vertical, which would be ok by me!) as yours, because we don't have the space, but your setup is starting to make me think that maybe we might be able to indulge Hubby a bit.

Thanks for sharing your photos, I really appreciated it!


Whitewater

 

[Chickie'sMomaInNH]

in our area the pond has to be at least 4' deep to keep the fish safe. (i'm zone 4/5 over here ) but you will have to make sure there is a hole thawed out in the ice so the fish can breath and the toxins in the water have a way to escape. (koi and other carp can produce a lot of ammonia in the water). you could always buy a heater for the pond to keep it slightly thawed out. just make sure you get the part that keeps the heater from resting on the pond bottom.

we have a lot of predators in our area that would love to go fishing if they had the easy chance so i haven't kept my fish out in the ponds. i had a couple of 55 gallon fish tanks in my house to bring them in during the cold months to keep an eye on them. that way i could check them over for parasites and wounds.

if you are using a prefab hard shelled pond they may crack after a few years of use and you need to make sure the edges of the liner aren't exposed to UV light or it breaks down the plastic a little quicker. the liners made out of rubber are a little better for making free forms and can last longer and can be repaired if they get cut.

if you are planning on putting fish in the pond make sure to check your local/state laws. my area we can have koi and goldfish, but the next state over you can't even own those in a fish tank! the only thing you can have in a pond in Maine is native fish stock! koi will continue to keep growing and can get to be almost 3' long. goldfish and pond comets usually only get to be about 6"-10" long and can survive better in smaller spaces than koi. koi need a lot of room even when they are very small. (they are beautiful though!)

 

[Catalina]

Do you mind if I ask a question? Actually, a couple questions! How do you overwinter your fish in the pond? I was always told that a shallow (ie, less than 6' deep) pond would freeze solid in our winters and kill the fish.

Even if you didn't have any fish, how did you keep your pond set-up from freezing and cracking and so on? Did you winterize everything? Or did you somehow try to keep it running?

Hey Whitewater- I re-dug my pond about 8 times in total and then this Fall I redid it again . I put up some pics of the different steps that I went through here
http://www.theeasygarden.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=25637
but there were a lot more changes that I was just to ashamed to put up! After a while it felt a little silly.
I started out with 8 gold fish 2 years ago in my first tiny pond, I over wintered them in an aquarium. Then last year I put them into the BIG pond and they had 98 babies. *not kidding 98*
This Fall I moved all the fish into 2 big tanks that are in my garage. I have a bubbler in each tank and a light and heat lamp. I saw them alive and well in Jan, but I haven't checked on them recently. They can't have any food until the water temp. is 56F (I think - I'd have to double check that), so they are just hanging out until summer.

I think I might try overwintering them in the pond next year. It's very deep. When I stand in the middle (if it's empty) I can't see over the edge. There are quite a few people on a different gardening forum that live in MN and overwinter their fish in the pond. Some use a heater and others build plastic tents over their ponds.

Hope that helps! Let me know if you have any other questions.

edited to add: When I said tanks I meant 55 gallon drum tank things, but they are built to keep fish in.

 

[Catalina]

if you are planning on putting fish in the pond make sure to check your local/state laws. my area we can have koi and goldfish, but the next state over you can't even own those in a fish tank! the only thing you can have in a pond in Maine is native fish stock!

And in MN it is illegal to have native fish in captivity (backyard pond or aquarium).

 

[Chickie'sMomaInNH]

if you are planning on putting fish in the pond make sure to check your local/state laws. my area we can have koi and goldfish, but the next state over you can't even own those in a fish tank! the only thing you can have in a pond in Maine is native fish stock!

And in MN it is illegal to have native fish in captivity (backyard pond or aquarium).

same in my state unless you are working with the Dept of AG to help restock a huge pond or lake!

 

[Catalina]

Transplanting seedlings tonight!

Also, anyone remember the USDA "free" seed thing from last year? Well, I planted 3 types of pepper from them and the potatoes they sent last August.
Everything has sprouted up!

But the garden is still covered in at least 2 to 3 feet of snow.

 

[vfem]

Transplanting seedlings tonight!

Also, anyone remember the USDA "free" seed thing from last year? Well, I planted 3 types of pepper from them and the potatoes they sent last August.
Everything has sprouted up!

But the garden is still covered in at least 2 to 3 feet of snow.

Sure did girl! I got a bunch of stuff from them I'm starting, including my peas. I did my potatoes in august and they rocked!

 

[Catalina]

Transplanting seedlings tonight!

Also, anyone remember the USDA "free" seed thing from last year? Well, I planted 3 types of pepper from them and the potatoes they sent last August.
Everything has sprouted up!

But the garden is still covered in at least 2 to 3 feet of snow.

Sure did girl! I got a bunch of stuff from them I'm starting, including my peas. I did my potatoes in august and they rocked!

I was wondering who could possibly plant potatoes in August! My poor USDA potatoes had to sit in the fridge for 6 months!

 

[Catalina]

Pictures from a few weeks ago of my started plants and potatoes.

Follow the links if you want to read more about how I started everything!

http://dustbathladies.blogspot.com/2010/03/potato-starts-from-usda.html

http://dustbathladies.blogspot.com/2010/03/tomato-starts-growing.html

http://dustbathladies.blogspot.com/2010/03/starting-seeds-spring-2010.html

 

[Catalina]

I have been working on cleaning up my garden this last week.
It was a long and hard winter, so there was a lot to clean up.
First I picked up all the junk. Then I fixed the pond. Last Fall I moved almost all the rocks off of the liner and took out the stream. Then I ran out of time and it was too cold and snowy.
Now I finally have the pond exactly the way I want it! After moving it only 10 times!
I also moved 2 more beds into an area where I want to put a small patio. I just have to wait until the tulips bloom and I can move them before putting in the pato.
Also, on the list is removing the shed from the corner of my garden. It's a nice sunny spot and I want to use it.
As you can see I decided to move my raised beds - again!