Container pond fun, how's yours

[Rad Michelle]

Man your really breaking the bank here but I'll see what I can do to arrange that, if that's wht it takes to get the pro . You guys get the airmattress tho if your crashing at my new pad

[LynneNY]

Ok - here are a few pictures of my new purple pickerel - I had to wait for the sun to go down a bit because there is so much glare on the pond in full sun all day long.

[Rad Michelle]

Wow great shot and awesome pond!! Would love to see whole pond if I've missed the thread... That's a good size plant bet you'll see blooms within a week or two, the flowering stalk emerges from the stalk of another leaf so if you notice any fatter stems it won't be long before the flower shoots up

[Junie]

Thank you all for your so  very kind words  
Today I found some dunks, and yes as you stated I have directions on how to break  up  each dunk --I think I will need 1/4 a Dunk for my "pond".

The water lily's brand name is  Top Fin---it came from my friend Lynne,  such a nice gift it was too!!! 

Thanks too for teling me about the type of bricks to use---I was at the nursery that sells such things today--but it was not on my list so I forgot to look for them---

Thank you all for your encourageing words---I will be back more often now.  

[LynneNY]

Wow great shot and awesome pond!! Would love to see whole pond if I've missed the thread... That's a good size plant bet you'll see blooms within a week or two, the flowering stalk emerges from the stalk of another leaf so if you notice any fatter stems it won't be long before the flower shoots up

Thanks Michelle!  I am a bit concerned - a few of the "fans" of the plant had the center leaf stalk bent and those leaves died so I cut them back - I'm hoping I will still see more new growth from those centers?  I left as much as I could when I cut the bent parts off.

I have posted my pond pictures before - I'll do a search tomorrow when I can see more clearly - it's past my bedtime now - 12:25a.m. EST.

[Junie]

Ok - here are a few pictures of my new purple pickerel - I had to wait for the sun to go down a bit because there is so much glare on the pond in full sun all day long.

Lynne--beautiful--as always--
and yes a full photo of the pond would be nice--or direction to the location of it if it is already posted somewhere here???

[LynneNY]

Thanks so much, Junie!

Here is a thread I found that I posted last August.  Of course the plants haven't filled in as much this year yet, but they are definitely on their way.  As a matter of fact, all of my plants are way ahead of schedule this year what with the very warm February, and the wettest March on record here.

http://www.americanponders.com/forum/index.php?topic=9947.msg103835#msg103835

[HOWELL]

My pickerel are barely growing....yours is awesome...

[PondmaninAL]

Man your really breaking the bank here but I'll see what I can do to arrange that, if that's wht it takes to get the pro . You guys get the airmattress tho if your crashing at my new pad

Okay Michelle, just make sure that the air mattress doesn't have a hole in it. My sister had one that my ex-wife and I tried to sleep on instead of the sleeper sofa. We found a hole right under my pillow.

Pickerel rush is a tough plant to kill. It was the first marginal "box plant" from Wally World that I got to make it. It came back this year after being frozen in the trough. I need to repot it before it does it on it's own.

[KatFish]

Yours is very pretty, Michelle.  I've had the regular pickerel for years and it's never bloomed for me, but anyone I sent divisions to got flowers!    Wonder why?

[PondmaninAL]

Yours is very pretty, Michelle.  I've had the regular pickerel for years and it's never bloomed for me, but anyone I sent divisions to got flowers!    Wonder why?

Katfish, how have you got it planted/potted?

[KatFish]

At first I had it in a pot with a mix similar to Joyce's mix for lotus.  This was before I knew about koi/plants, so you know the rest of that story.  Then I started planting it bare-root in my falls, and now my bog.  I wonder if it was getting so many nutrients that it just grew foliage like crazy, so we'll see what it does in the new environment.

[Rad Michelle]

Full sun?

[KatFish]

Yes ma'am.

[PondmaninAL]

It might have been getting enough nutrients to grow but not enough of the right one to bloom. Seems like no matter what soil I put mine in, it still blooms.

Oh, Michelle, full sun isn't necessary either. Mine was in part shade up to half a day and still bloomed.

[Esther]

FINALLY!! I have a blossom.

 



Points of possible interest. Columbine planted beside pot by bird maybe?? There is no Columbine in the front yard at all. Well there is now. There are two, maybe year old goldfish in the pots to get the mosquito larvae. The lily blossom here matched the one in the big pond today. Must be related. Both are my first this year.

[miguynmkoi]

Very nice, Esther!  I like your pond(s) set up.

[Rad Michelle]

Wow I love it! Where did u get the containers? And is that what the pretty flowering plant is

[HOWELL]

That is a big pond....esther wish I could go there and sit by it....

[Esther]

I really wouldn't reccomend those pots. They were cheap and I think from Lowes or Home Depot but I have to be really careful of them as they are that styrofoamy stuff and the color is coming off after one year. But I can be careful easy enough rather than spending money.

Columbine comes in lots of colors and can be kind of a pain as they have LOTS of seeds that creep into the cracks in the cement around the pool etc and growwwwww so healthy. LOL. If you want some, just say so as I'm sure it won't be long and they'll be forming seeds. To be honest, I never planted the original in the flower bed and figure a bird planted it back several years ago.

[Vickie]

Esther when did you put that pot and other preformed in? That looks nice. And Rad and Junie you tubs look great.

[Esther]

Vickie, the preform you see is feeding the little pond below. It looks like it is attached to the big pond but isn't. It has it''s own baby skimmer filter under the boardwalk. In the preform are a couple of floor scrubber pads that start out the season in the big skippy and get put in the preform a few weeks later. That maroon pitcher pump came from the farm I grew up on. We had a well put in about 1952 after I brought in a bucket of water with a snail in it.
 
So the little pond and waterfall preform was put in the summer of maybe 2008 I think. The pots were done the same summer I think.

Howell, I wish you could to.

[Junie]

Esther when did you put that pot and other preformed in? That looks nice. And Rad and Junie you tubs look great.

Vickie Thank you so much for your kind words.

Ester !! great looking tub, and wonderful looking lily.   I am envious.
Hopefully I too will soon have a flower.- I was cleaning out my water the other day, so I could add a portion of the Dunks that I found (yea!!!) and guess what?? I saw a small bud about 1-2 inches up from the pot.  Yea Me !!!!!

But Ester here  is a question for you.
 I have a half barrel here, and unless my eyes are decieving me, I think your tub is the same size.  You said you had fish in yours.---so how do you keep them alive in say July-August??-  I would think that the sun would boil the fish???

[Esther]

I don't know. I don't have an air stone or anything moving the water either. I do feed them when I feed the big ones in the ponds but a flaked stuff because they are so tiny. We'll see this summer if they make it or not. It's so plagued hot already. I think even hotter than all of last summer and it's only spring. I do run a hose in the pots every so often but not to keep them cool, just for a water change. I don't know. They just seem to do OK. The fish in the preform in the back yard don't get fed at all and they survive. That doesn't have circulating water or air either.

[HOWELL]

It will be just awesome to share some time with you by the pond...

[Junie]

I don't know. I don't have an air stone or anything moving the water either. I do feed them when I feed the big ones in the ponds but a flaked stuff because they are so tiny. We'll see this summer if they make it or not.  I do run a hose in the pots every so often but not to keep them cool, just for a water change. I don't know.They just seem to do OK. The fish in the preform in the back yard don't get fed at all and they survive. That doesn't have circulating water or air either.

Thanks for answering me. I guess I will just sit and watch yours for once.

This question goes out to anyone--how do I keep the algae from growing on everything??? so far in is not on my flowers but the water  is murky ...yuck

[Esther]

Look at mine closely and you'll see string algae starting but the water is clear. I have used an algae killer in them before but not often and not this year yet. How long have you had your pots going? Mine is maybe 3 weeks.

[PondmaninAL]

String algae is heavy for me this year but I pull some out and leave some to deter the tadpoles from munching on my lily pads.

[Junie]

I have used an algae killer in them before but not often and not this year yet. How long have you had your pots going? Mine is maybe 3 weeks.

I started mine on May 3rd--so next Monday will be 4 weeks.

[Joyce]

Here is my silly little birdbath island pond, with fern, dwarf acorus and a couple tiny Korean Violet seedlings poked into the moss.
And a little start of Blue Star Creeper. Will need to take a follow up photo in a month or so to show you how it will fill in.
The birds love this one cuz they land on the arched metal butterfly-bell arm first to look around and make sure the coast is clear.
The deer do not like to drink from this because I think the copper basin gives the water a funky flavor.