Hi
I am not sure this has been addressed before and I am looking for suggestions. I have a small 40 gallon plastic pond submerged in the ground. I only have one fish left and I have had him for 4.5 years. I am struggling with a mud issue that seems to be coming from the soil around the pond between the rocks and hard to remove at this point without making the pond worse. This is a hassle because I have to keep the pond covered with a wire cage for Raccoons and now I have to cover every available opening with something so the birds don't go in and drown. Not very attractive.
Everything has to come off when I clean the pumps or take the water level way down to add clean water in. But the pond is boring and I feel bad for the fish in it. He has a milk crate that he likes hiding in but I am looking for small plants for him that DON'T require dirt. I know about water Hyacinth, but there isn't any this time of year. It is a dismal environment for him. I thought about giving him to someone that had a bigger pond but was told that would stress him or the fish he was being given to stressed which causes diseases. I don't know what to do so I thought some dirtless plants (if there is anything like that) would help.
Any ideas would be appreciated.