Autumn Pond Care

It is important to prepare and protect your pond over the autumn and winter months so that you have a healthy start the following spring. We recommend doing a few simple steps leading up to winter and having a few key items / tools will help.

First we would start by tidying up and cutting back / pruning pond plants, how much can depend on the type and age of the plant. By doing this you are helping to prevent them from rotting and polluting the water while also allowing room for a healthy growth in spring. Two key tools to help you with this are Oase Pond Scissors and  Oase Pond Pliers. These tools both have long arms so it is easier to reach without the need to get yourself wet and cold in the pond.

Next job is to clear the pond of any debris, blanket weed etc. For blanket weed we would recommend using a Hozelock Blanket Weed Brush. This brush has been designed with an extendable arm for easy reach and a durable nylon brush head. For leaves, algae and other debris, you can use a standard Oase Pond Net to remove these manually. Alternatively, you can use the Oase Pond Vac Classic for clearing most debris from the pond. The pond vac has a high-power suction to a depth of 1.5m with 4 different suction nozzles.

Once you have cleared the pond, we would then recommend using a Blagdon Pond Cover/Net to protect against further debris falling into the pond.

It is now the time to think about ice prevention. If your pond freezes over completely, gases and toxins will build up underneath the ice causing harm or death to your fish and there is also no oxygen supply for the fish to breath. A pond heater simply leaves a small area of water unfrozen for the harmful gases to escape and allowing an oxygen supply to the pond. There are two different types of ice prevention that we would recommend: Oase IceFree 20 – this is not a heater but instead pumps small amounts of the lower warmer water to the surface to keep a diameter of approx. 20cm ice free. Bermuda Pond Heater – this is a simple yet effective heater.

In winter, most people stop feeding there fish when the water temperature drops. With low temperatures, fish go into a type of hibernation and stop eating. A general rule most people use is when the water temperature is above 10 degrees you feed normally, between 6-10 degrees use Wheatgerm and below 6 degrees stop feeding. This is a rule used by most, however it can change depending on pond and fish size. To help you monitor water temperature we recommend using a Bermuda Pond Thermometer. When the temperature changes, use Wheatgerm fish food over autumn and again in spring.

For personal protection when cleaning and maintaining your pond, we recommend wearing Bermuda Waders and Bermuda Pond Gloves.

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Published October 14th, 2013 by Joshua. Article ref 1283

Tags: Aquatic Plants, autumn care, Fish, pond care, pond maintenance, winter care

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