Topics

31

Pond Chat / Frog or toad???

« on: June 19, 2010, 08:38:40 PM »

This guy has been hiding in our skimmer for a few weeks now.  He doesn't move when my husband lifts the lid off to clean the filter either.  He seems to be fine - serenades us every night, quite loudly too.

Is he a frog or toad?  I'm leaning towards toad with all those bumps?!?
And which one is he?

32

Pond Chat / Purple pickerel in bloom

« on: June 19, 2010, 08:22:34 PM »

My last pictures of this new plant for me were in the container pond thread, so I thought I'd start a new one for just this plant.  It's been blooming for a few days now, and getting prettier the more it blooms.



Anyone else want to share pictures of their pickerel?

33

Pond Chat / Finally captured...

« on: June 19, 2010, 08:06:26 PM »

on camera!!!

I've been trying to get at least one of the many dragonflies by my pond to sit still long enough for me to take a picture.  This one cooperated nicely for me today.

On a sunflower bud


Then nearby on a tomato stake I have at the pond to keep the heron away!

34

Pond Chat / healthy koi?

« on: June 18, 2010, 08:05:44 PM »

I was in a store today where they had a very nice looking small pure white butterfly koi.  Its fins were a bit shredded, but that often happens in these stores, but the odd thing is that where the nostrils (?) are on the top of the face were fleshy looking pieces sticking up.  It's hard to describe it - the employees hadn't ever seen this before, and neither had I, so I didn't get it, because I didn't know if this was normal or not?

Anyone know?

35

Pond Chat / Tons of tiny wiggly things?

« on: June 11, 2010, 09:31:38 PM »

My husband pointed out tons and tons of teensy tiny black wiggly things on the waterfall rocks today when he shut off the flow to clean the filters.  I have never seen them before and can't imagine what they are?  They seem to stay on the waterfall rocks whether the water is flowing or not?  I won't be home tomorrow, and if it's not raining on Sunday I will try and get a picture, but they are very small.

Anyone have any ideas?

36

Pond Chat / oh NOOOO!

« on: June 03, 2010, 06:34:30 AM »

Just saw the great blue heron flying over my pond honking away!   Glad I happen to be looking out the window as he soared overhead - I made some noise and he kept on going!    For now...

37

Pond Chat / foam!

« on: May 29, 2010, 06:29:35 PM »

I was wondering why our pond gets this foam every morning?  It's usually worse on cooler mornings, and disappears by mid-morning.  We have a UV filter in the skimmer, and another filter up on the waterfall that is fed from a bottom drain.

38

Terrestrial Gardening / begonia

« on: May 26, 2010, 07:29:00 AM »

I found this plant last year and LOVED it all summer, but it didn't overwinter indoors for me, so I was thrilled when the same nursery got it in again this spring, as they are the only one that had this particular one.  I'll have to find the tag from last year - it has "fire" in the name - DUH!

39

Pond Chat / rush blooms?!?

« on: May 26, 2010, 07:02:29 AM »

I've had this plant for 2 years now and it's never bloomed before - these are considered blooms aren't they?  Can I take them and plant them to get more plants?  When would I do that if I can?

40

Pond Chat / How do you stand it???

« on: May 26, 2010, 03:41:56 AM »

It's spawning time again for my comets!  At least 2 of my poor females are being chased relentlessly since early this morning.  I can't bare to watch - it's EXHAUSTING!!!   One poor lady is getting tossed up in the air frequently in the chase.  I so hope she doesn't come into harm - she's one of 2 mostly white with just 2 spots of orange on the top of her head which helps distinguish her from the rest.  Poor baby.

41

Chit Chat / camera???

« on: May 23, 2010, 02:22:00 PM »

 My 19 year old daughter is going on a 10 day trip abroad in 2 weeks, and needs a camera. I'd like it to be easy, not too expensive, small, but at the same time GOOD!!! She will be in lots of sunshine and heat, so it needs to be able to perform in those situations without any attachments.

Suggestions for anything between $100 - $200?

42

Terrestrial Gardening / Hens and chicks

« on: May 22, 2010, 09:40:04 AM »

I've grown hens and chicks for many years now, and find it hard to resist buying "just one more" when I'm plant shopping.  I bought 2 of these about a month ago at Home Depot and this one is already sending up a flower stalk - pretty early for around here, but then again my hostas are also sending up bloom stalks very early.

43

Pond Chat / Today's blooms

« on: May 22, 2010, 09:17:15 AM »

My Walmart purchase from 2 summers ago - lost the name


First Sioux flower of the year just opening - it's pretty small?

44

Pond Chat / The first water lily bloom is...

« on: May 17, 2010, 08:16:55 PM »

always so exciting!

This is the first to bloom this year.  Now that we have the pond running more smoothly than the first 2 years, I am rewarded with lots of buds rising to the surface much earlier than last year when the water was pea soup for so long.

45

Pond Chat / Bird of Paradise?

« on: May 11, 2010, 01:17:57 PM »

About 4 years ago, I bought a plant at IKEA that was labeled "Yellow Bird of Paradise".  It has grown well in my kitchen but hasn't flowered yet.  I had read that they don't flower until the plant gets 10 leaves - it has more than that.  A year later, I bought another one at IKEA - I do like the foliage, so I figured IF I get any flowers that would be an awesome bonus!

I was wondering if anyone has grown these plants IN your ponds?  The leaves are similar to the pickerel I just bought - fleshy and shiny, so I was wondering if it could be grown in my pond in full sun?  Would that encourage it to bloom?

46

Chit Chat / credit car fraud!!!

« on: May 06, 2010, 09:35:32 AM »

We just received yet ANOTHER phone call from American Express asking about a particular purchase that was attempted. NOOOOOOOO we had NOT made that purchase! Someone compromised my husband's card at a Home Depot using one of their "self check-out" machines!!!

This really upsets me because... that means that someone has installed somekind of spyware on that machine in Home Depot. How else would someone get his card number if he did this check-out all by himself? It was the only place he used the card yesterday. This morning, the person who stole the info attempted to make a purchase at another Home Depot in Orlando, Florida! My husband joked to me, that no, he had not gone to Florida for breakfast and then returned to work in NY this morning!

This is really upsetting me because it's the second time in just a few months that this has happened to our cards. Mine was compromised before, and attempted to be used in a WalMart in Canada! These thieves are more and more prevalent these days - thank goodness American Express has been on their toes for us!

Please be VERY vigilant when using your cards. The American Express representative suggested that we scrutinize all our other credit card bills - I am passing that suggestion on to all of you! 

47

Pond Chat / A puzzle

« on: May 04, 2010, 03:43:29 PM »

This is the 3rd year we've had our pond up and running.  Last spring I got about 50 free fathead minnows from the county - they provide them to try and cut down on the mosquito population.  I never saw a single one all last year - not coming up for food, not swimming on the surface going after mosquito eggs and/or larvae like they are supposed to, not while I was in the pond and the water was very clear.

Fastforward to today.  I just fed my fish - I have 8 six inch goldfish from last summer, and 12 small feeder fish that I bought about a month ago, plus 2 small yellow koi.  But...

There is a black fish eating with them now.  It is the size of the smaller feeder fish that I have, looks mostly black with a lighter colored underside.  I'm thinking it is one of the minnows rather than a baby goldfish?  Or is it a baby that hasn't changed colors yet?  It's hard to get a very good look because we still have some algae going right now.  And the fact that I bought 12 more feeders will make it difficult to know if this fish eventually changes color... unless I keep seeing a dark fish.

What do you all think???

48

Pond Chat / A visitor this morning!

« on: April 28, 2010, 06:03:03 AM »

My husband woke me at 5a.m. on his way out to work to tell me "something" had gotten into my galvanized can that holds my bird seed on our second story deck.  He thought it was a black bear and ran upstairs to get his camera and to tell me.

Yep - he was right!






While bears are not a common sighting around here, they have been coming down from the Appalachian Mountains nearby more often the past few years.  We have had a bear on our deck twice before - didn't see it, but it bent my birdfeeder down to the floor both times!


I called the "non-emergent" police this morning because the neighborhood kids would be walking to their buses soon.  There is nothing they will do about the bears unless they are up in a tree, or harming someone or something, but a cop did come out and blast his horn and siren which chased the bear further behind our house.

I actually didn't mind seeing him - my husband and I met while we were both living in Alaska and were used to these things, but again... I was concerned for the kids and pets outside.

49

Pond Chat / Oh Happy Day!

« on: April 18, 2010, 08:58:05 PM »

So... the bad news is that somehow I hurt my back in December and I am not able to go into the pond for now, or do much gardening.   But the good news is that my husband went in for me today, cleaned the leaves out, and brought up all the pots to the side of the pond so I could clean the plants and fertilize them.  The following is what I found today.

The first 2 are "cheap" water lilies from WalMart that did well for me their first summer last year and made it through the winter nicely with the heater we had in the pond.

This one started growing so nicely with the early warm temperatures that we've had, that it grew through the basket and broke it!  I removed it, sutured up the side with gardening wire, and potted up this baby.


Then I saw this!  At least 5 lily buds already growing in the second pot - in April! WOW!!!


And this one that I bought at the end of August last year from PetSmart - the tuber was all but dead, but it did grow quickly and even flowered a few before the season ended.  It, too, has 2 buds coming up - I am thrilled!


What made you happy today?

50

Wakin, Shubunkins and Goldfish... / The CHASE is on!!!

« on: April 04, 2010, 08:14:40 AM »

Will she make it?!?  I've had 8 sarassa comets for about 8 months now.  They gotten to be a nice size - bought them as feeder size and they are now about 5-6 inches long including tails. They have been chasing 3 in particular, but this morning they are all after one.  NON-STOP!  I've watched this for about an hour already, but I'm sure it's been going on longer than that.

They all gang up on her and surround her in the middle and smash into her - not so much into the side of the pond, although they are chasing her right along the edges.  She must be exhausted!   How long does it take for the eggs to be released?  And more importantly... will she survive this?!?

51

Pond Chat / Sioux?

« on: September 13, 2009, 12:10:21 PM »

This was bought at a "box" store and labled "Sioux" - is it really?  Even if it's not, I love it anyway!

52

Pond Chat / Do robins fish in ponds???

« on: August 26, 2009, 06:40:55 AM »

This morning there is a huge flock of robins flying over, around, landing on rocks lining the pond, bathing in the waterfall, and almost landing in the water!  One tried to land on a thin long branch of a black lace elderberry bush that is growing along side the edge of the pond - he all but fell in, before catching his balance again.

So do I need to be concerned about my 11 comets in there?   They seem to be hiding under the lilly pads while all this commotion is going on today.  I don't know why the birds are here like that today - I usually just have a couple in the yard at any given time.  There are a bunch of starlings in the yard today as well.

53

Pond Chat / 2 years ago today...

« on: August 25, 2009, 08:24:21 AM »

My husband finished our pond and filled it with water for the first time!
 

And here it is yesterday with lots of plants and fish  and algae !!!
(through the upstairs bathroom window because that's the only place I can get the entire pond area in the camera frame like this!


What a difference 2 years can make, huh?

54

Pond Chat / String algae

« on: August 08, 2009, 08:16:17 PM »

I have posted before about the string algae that was covering the waterfall rocks.  About a week and a half ago, I scrubbed it off when my husband turned off the waterfall, and THAT is when the BIG problem began!  It is now covering EVERYTHING in the pond!  I am constantly removing it from the sides and pots, but it is even on the waterlily pads, and seems to be strangling the stems of the pads?  I am afraid it might prevent them from growing, and from buds to grow as well?

This is on a very small Sioux waterlily that I potted up just a couple of weeks ago.


I bought this basket earlier this summer.  It reminded me of the kind of baskets that driving ranges keep golf balls in - my parents were obsessed with golf!!!  Anywho... I thought that if my husband cut off the handle and I turned it upsidedown, the fish might enjoy swimming in and out of it, and could "hide" in there if a predator came along.  They do love swimming through it, and he has seen some sleeping in there early in the morning when he leaves for work at 5a.m.  He will cut some of the wrungs out when the fish get bigger so they will still be able to fit through them.

BUT... here it is all covered in that "lovely" string algae! 
I went out and bought the kitty litter last Wednesday and put 2 knee high stockings full of it under the waterfall, and a bag at the top where the water first comes out of the fall.  I also took out the old barley straw and put in 2 bags of fresh straw.  What else can we do - it's really taking over!

 

55

Pond Chat / what kind of algae

« on: July 25, 2009, 08:22:46 PM »

is this?

The other day, I noticed that the rocks under the waterfall were VERY green!  Today, I was able to scrub them clean when my husband turned off the waterfall to clean the filter.  It was very slimey, and what is the darker green area?





My husband put in 2 UV lights in the skimmer about a month ago and the pond water is now nice and clear, so we were surprised to see all that on the rocks.  That is actually much less than a few days ago!

Here is an after picture of the nice, clean waterfall.

56

Terrestrial Gardening / It's so cheesy!!!

« on: July 20, 2009, 05:35:16 PM »

Last year and this summer I have grown orange and yellow flowers in the pond gardens and nearby, to accentuate the colors of the fish in the pond.  When I was taking some pictures of the flowers today, I got a very cheesy feeling - the colors reminded me of assorted cheeses - American, cheddar, Velveeta!    See for yourself!

In the garden leading to the pond... orange mini zinnias
 

gazanias on rocks lining pond


gaillardia oranges and lemons by driveway


Dwarf yellow cannas behind the arbor bench by the pond
 

Another one


I have been trying to get a good shot of these calendulas all summer,
but they are just too bright for my camera's liking!



Anyone else have some cheesy flowers to share?

57

Pond Chat / water lily newbie question

« on: July 12, 2009, 07:57:11 PM »

Some of you know that I have 2 water lilies from WalMart in my pond.  I was thrilled to see a bud on one last week when it was on the shelf in the pond.  We lowered it to the pond bottom, and it's doing fine.  The bud started to open yesterday, but within a few hours it got very dark/cloudy outside and remained that way until we had heavy rain from 10p.m. and the rest of the night.

I noticed that the lily closed up when the clouds covered the sky, but that wasn't much different than many of my non-water plants so I didn't give it much thought.  When I left the house at 9 this morning, the lily was beginning to open once again, but when I returned at 3 it was totally closed up again.  We had a beautiful clear blue sky/sunny day all day.  Is this flower finished?  Do they only bloom for one day?  It didn't even get a chance to fully open.

And does anyone know which one this might be?  I can't find the labels, and with WalMart one doesn't always get what the label says anyway...

Here is is yesterday before it closed up in the darker weather.

58

Pond Chat / ABS/PVC pipes?

« on: July 11, 2009, 07:50:56 AM »

Yesterday afternoon we put an elbow shaped ABS pipe (black) into the pond for the fish to have another place to hide in and swim through.  This morning 2 fish were dead, and another is "hiding" his head under a lily pad leaf.  Not his entire body, but just his head - I coax him to swim away but he keeps going back.

We are wondering if there is anything in the ABS pipe that might be making the fish sick?  All the others seem to be fine and ate just a little while ago.

Oh, and I have a water lily bloom on my cheapo WalMart lily today!  I know that some of you experts don't think that's such a big deal, but for our first water lily bloom EVER we think it's a VERY BIG exciting event! Everyone has to spend within their means you know?    Pictures to come just as soon as my husband takes them.

59

Pond Chat / Who am I?

« on: July 08, 2009, 06:42:33 PM »

We have had several frogs/toads singing their hearts out for a few weeks now. It started with just one, and then pretty soon there were at least 6 calling back and forth from just before dusk til about midnight. Two days ago, one floated into the skimmer and was dead when my husband took it out. We have no idea what happened to it. But that night and last night there was only the one singing! What happened to all the others? It's very strange.

This evening when my husband was cleaning the skimmer there were 2 on the rim inside. He tried to get some pictures but this is the best of the batch. AND... there isn't any singing tonight!!!

Do you think this is an American Toad?  It does trill rather than "ribbit", but I'm not sure of the coloring.

60

Wakin, Shubunkins and Goldfish... / young comets spawning?

« on: July 06, 2009, 08:01:40 PM »

I have 15 comet feeder fish - the 27 cent PetSmart size that I bought over the past 2 weeks.  The past 2 days I have seen some of the jumping up into the bottom of the waterfall in our pond, and acting crazy.  I was wondering at what age do comets spawn?  Are these fish too young to be doing that?  Is something else going on?  Anyone have experience with this behavior in younger/smaller comets?