Watergarden Crap!

[gspotmc]

Quote: Originally Posted by KoiCop Hey, Michael . . . Did it smell good when you mucked it out?

Don,
It did actually. I asked the pond installer to haul out all his rocks and gravels. The guy asked me my I wanted the r & g to be taken out. I told him you will know in a while. R & G was taken out 2 years ago.
Michael

[gspotmc]

Will post a couple more pictures from the same landscaper.

[gspotmc]

He does make good hardscape.

[powerman]

not good for fish.....mine was worse....but it is very nice looking and if you have the space to leave it , i think it would look excellent running as a fountain.....you could put beach or chlorine in it and only run the pump when you are out in the yard............ or does it cause you grief to even look at it thinking about the fish kill that happened

[gspotmc]

Quote: Originally Posted by powerman not good for fish.....mine was worse....but it is very nice looking and if you have the space to leave it , i think it would look excellent running as a fountain.....you could put beach or chlorine in it and only run the pump when you are out in the yard............ or does it cause you grief to even look at it thinking about the fish kill that happened

I like the hardscape. If I do eventually decide to tear it down I will keep the hardscape and build a new pond from the same site at least a 13K gal pond. I already have plans and design for it. I want to remember my mistakes as a learning experience. My kids still talk about it but we have moved on. They always remind to take care of our pets. especially my 6 years old (Kaitlyne).
Michael

[RookieKoiGuy]

You have a zoo over there

[diamond*girl]

Sorry to bring up this thread again, but I'm going to dare to ask a possibly ignorant question (cringes and ducks!)

I've looked at this floating island. It is made of a relatively soft foamy substance, with no hard or sharp edges. It is designed to contain the plants and substrate and allow water to seep through. Eventually the roots will grow through the island forming a dense floating mat of roots. It seems to me that the size of the thing and how you plant it would keep falling leaves and bits from getting into the pond. I understand the drawbacks to having plants in a pond, but doesn't this product solve alot of them?

I would think some positives would be fish get to eat roots, shade, a hideaway from predators and the plants would soak up nitrates and phosphates.

The only real negative I've read on this thread involves using fishing line in the water to anchor it. If you used some other method that did not involve anything hanging in the water (like tying it to a nearby deck), what exactly are the negatives of this product in a koi pond?

[MikeM]

Not familiar with this particular product. Similar ones I've seen had hard, rough or even sharp edges to the plastic. ....If the roots can grow through to the water, fertilizer nutrient in the planting mix would leach into the water.

[KoiCop]

Quote: Originally Posted by diamond*girl I would think some positives would be fish get to eat roots, shade, a hideaway from predators and the plants would soak up nitrates and phosphates.

Hello d*g . . .

The long and the short of it is that in a properly designed, stocked, fed, filtered and maintained koi pond the fish don't need supplemental roots to eat, don't need supplemental shade, don't need a hideaway from predators and there's no excess nitrates and phosphates to feed the plants.

[diamond*girl]

Quote: Originally Posted by KoiCop Hello d*g . . . The long and the short of it is that in a properly designed, stocked, fed, filtered and maintained koi pond the fish don't need supplemental roots to eat, don't need supplemental shade, don't need a hideaway from predators and there's no excess nitrates and phosphates to feed the plants.

Agreed. BUT ... they might enjoy nibbling on roots, they might feel comfortable being able to hide even if a predator can't get to them, some of us don't shade our ponds because it never gets hot enough where we live and this way they would have a little if they wanted, while the pond gets max. warmth from the sun, AND ... it looks good.

So even though it is not needed, are there any good reasons why it's not wanted?