We've talked about how pond lighting and outdoor lighting in general is the most underutilized addition to many landscapes, however will pond lighting affect our fish?   We are asked this quite frequently throughout the year when a hobbyist is interested in adding this wonderful feature to their existing or newly created koi pond.  Do you think adding lights to your pond could harm your koi/pond fish?  

The waterlily is one of the most popular additions to any fish pond or water garden.  They are beautiful, have wonderful flowers, and of course the the most favored area for our favorite pond inhabitant, the frog, to hang out.  
While these "jewels" of the water garden are beautiful they do have have a few requirements for them to grow big and beautiful.  Have you ever noticed from one year to the next they just aren't doing as well or maybe you noticed it's not blooming?  

We live in a world of hustle and bustle, our time is at a premium and most of that time is taken up by daylight.  Often, we work long hours during daylight and just don't have the time to sit back and enjoy our koi ponds or water features during the day.  When the sun turns off, it doesn't mean we have to stop enjoying all the beauty our water features and koi ponds posses.  The night koi pond and water feature is like no other.  

Skimmers... it's a word often associated with swimming pools, however they are a integral piece of the filtration puzzle for koi ponds and water gardens.  Koi pond skimmers perform the mechanical part of the filtration process.  Koi pond skimmers are a line of defense in keeping leaves, twigs and other debris by catching this debris in an easy to empty debris basket.  In addition, the great koi pond skimmer also houses the pump, the heart of any koi or fish pond.   Why is any of this of any importance for the koi pond hobbyist?  

​Before we get right into it, let’s run through a quick scenario.

​You are in the process of or have recently just purchased your new dream home.  You and your family are ecstatic and elated with your new home and looking forward to creating long lasting memories together.  There just so happens to be this body of water which was called a fish pond or maybe you just have a fountain or one of those circulating waterfalls. 

You and the family stand outside gazing at this beautiful feature or maybe it’s not so beautiful but green, murky, and just plain stagnant.  Either way you look back at your home and then at the water feature thinking to yourself:  What have I gotten myself into, I don’t even know where to start?  What now? 

You're excited, you know you want a koi pond!  You can't wait to be able to watch your new fish swimming around and relax to the soothing sounds of your new waterfall and stream.  But you are struggling with where to put it in your yard.  This is a common question we receive, where should I put my new koi or fish pond?  

Have you ever heard the term Pondless Waterfall or even Disappearing Waterfall and thought to yourself, What in the world is that?  It sounds weird and how can you actually have a waterfall without a body of water?  The Pondless or Disappearing Waterfall is an often over looked way to add the sights, sounds and beauty of water to your space without the maintenance of an ecosystem pond.   

We all love our pond fish and koi!  They swim about together, greet you at the surface for some food, and swim gracefully creating a calm respite for us to relax.  You may have experienced going out to your pond and seeing one of your pond fish or koi not hanging out with the others and just sitting by itself in a corner with its fins clamped to it's side.   It almost seems as though it's in TIME OUT.  If you have or do experience this, it's a time to be a bit concerned for your fish friend.   

July is hot, humid, full of sunshine, and fireworks here in New Jersey.   It's also the month we mark on our calendars to perform our Mid-Summer Pond/Water Feature Visits.   July marks the middle of our ponding season and the time has come to perform some important maintenance tasks to keep our fish ponds and water features running strong for the remainder of the season.  

Your New Jersey pond professional, or maybe you, has just finished installing a new koi pond and you are so excited.  It's beautiful and you can't wait to relax with your favorite beverage and take in the sights and sounds of your new waterfall.  Your fish are happy and stunning, you're just elated!  
A few days pass, your fish pond is doing great and you go outside one day and see something horrible.  Your newly installed koi pond isn't clear any more, not even cloudy, it's GREEN!  You can't see anything and you want to cry!  That beautiful pond is now UGLY and you can't figure out what went wrong or what to do.  What just happened?