Outdoor ponds make an excellent addition to your garden. You can install a pond as an accent or as a centerpiece of your backyard’s overall design. However, a pond can also serve a more fulfilling purpose; a place to raise fish.
Now a pond is neither an aquarium nor a fish farm. Aquariums are aesthetic, a place to display ornamental fish. Fish farms are practical, a place for breeding fish. A backyard pond is a happy medium. It’s a place to show off your fish but at the same time allow them to live and breed in a natural setting.
Why Build a Fish Pond?
When does a pond become a fish pond? Obviously, it’s when your pond contains fish! But that doesn’t mean you can simply buy a bunch of fish and dump them into your pond. A fish pond is specially built not only to contain fish, but also to keep them alive and healthy. Why should you build a fish pond? A few ideas come to mind:
- Taking care of fish is a challenging and enjoyable hobby.
- A fish pond is an attractive feature that adds to the beauty of your backyard.
- Challenge. Some water gardeners aren’t satisfied with a simple self-sustaining pond. They want to constantly test their horticultural and husbandry skills; and nothing provides a better vehicle for this than taking care of a pond full of fish.
Tips for a Healthy Fish Pond
Every feature of your pond should be carefully considered and controlled. The pond’s many parts should work in harmony for the benefit of your fish. Here are some key points that you should remember to make your backyard pond thrive.
For example, water quality should be maintained. Fish are susceptible to diseases and also high nitrogen levels. Your fish pond will surely need a good filtration system.
Build your pond so that it’s well away from trees and shrubbery. This will reduce the amount of debris that falls into your pond and prevent your filter from becoming clogged. This will also save you a lot of tedious maintenance work.
Finally, spend some time researching your fish’s needs. Each fish has its own requirements that you would do well to consider when sizing your pond. For example, goldfish need very little space and you can stock quite a lot even in a small pond. Koi however need a lot of room to swim and thus you’ll need a bigger pond. Happy fish make for a successful pond and a satisfied pond builder.
Want to find out more about Pond Building, then visit Michael W.’s site on how to build the best outdoor pond for your needs and dreams.