***another update***

A few weeks ago the pond went solid green[emoji21] We had a major algae bloom and my husband couldn't stand it after a week of not being able to see the fish. So after looking at uv sterilizer reviews online we decided to give it a try. And I am amazed and very happy! It only took 5 days to go from solid green to completely clear! Only downside is that the fish are extremely shy now. Hopefully once the Lilly pads come up they will feel more secure.

So this is where we are right now. My husband and I just got the dock built a couple days ago, but I still want to sand and stain it before putting it in.

http://cdn.imageserver.c-m-g.us/home...1432909843.jpg

We got some plants planted but still waiting to put the dock up before I add more plants. The pond has been planted, and sadly my floaters are so sappy from the past cold snaps. I'm hoping they multiple faster once we stay warm again. Got some snails from my mom for a hardier clean up crew.
And my husband took us out to a koi farm this past Wednesday so I could get a yellow koi! We ended up leaving with an additional 3 koi[emoji5]️ He was very impressed with the koi farm and couldn't believe how big this guys koi were. I must say I was impressed too! I wish I would have known about them before we bought our other fish. We would have only bought from them.

So here's our new babies!
http://cdn.imageserver.c-m-g.us/home...1432910369.jpg

http://cdn.imageserver.c-m-g.us/home...1432910390.jpg

I finished the dock over the weekend and my husband helped put it in yesterday. Today we put plants in[emoji4] Next is the rock border to hold back the rhubarb and stepping stones. Then the patio. Almost done! It's taking longer then I was expecting, but I'm very happy with how it's tuning out[emoji2]http://cdn.imageserver.c-m-g.us/home...1433261768.jpg

Boy technology can really trip me up! Posted the pic then couldn't figure out how to write my reply! So here goes....I have a tiny homestead in an inner ring detroit suburb. We have a tiny 3 tree apple orchard. (Column trees to save space). 4 raised beds behind the garage for veggies, a gutter garden with strawberries hanging on the side of the garage, and raspberries and blackberries in the narrow side garden. And a tiny pond with a waterfall, stocked with goldfish and tadpoles. I just built this little dock, out of an old pallet, so my grandkids could get up close to feed the fish and dangle their feet in the water. Your design is really beautiful, I
Hope you keep Posting pics of your progress. We are dedicated to homesteading but both recognize the need for a place of beauty and calm. This pond is part of that place. You'll enjoy yours for many years, and YES, you will tweak it or maybe even completely redo it (this is my fifth or sixth version). Thanks for sharing, have an awesome day!

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@hfuller Love, Love, Love the picture! Your place sounds amazing[emoji2]

We still haven't gotten to the patio yet[emoji52] And now due to work issues it will be put on the back burner for now[emoji53]

I did take a picture to compare how much the pond plants have grown though.
http://cdn.imageserver.c-m-g.us/home...1434742051.jpg

The pond might look empty but there are fish in there. They are still shy, but loving all the hiding places in the plants. And I'm happy for all the cover. So far we haven't lost anyone to predators.

Looking good! Your water is so clear, I'm impressed! I can spot several fish in your pictures.

Such a great job you did, hope you get the patio done soon!

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*Updating again*
The underwater plants have really taken off! So much so that I was losing too much oxygen at night. Nearly all my snails came to the top!
We got a tank for the house and brought in the 6 comet goldfish. Sadly one died from lack of oxygen in the tank. Realizing the problem we got them a nice big bubbler.

We elevated the uv pump output to agitate the water more out in the pond and removed a bucket full of plants! And the pond still looks full[emoji15] Some I put in the aquarium the rest will likely go to my mom. Or maybe I'll start up a water garden in the old water tank outside. Not sure yet.

My husband also got me a couple more pleco's. One little 1 1/2inch for the aquarium and a 10-11inch for the pond! I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw him! I've never seen one so big! Of course we were at a pet store nearly 2hrs from home too. So I had to keep a close eye on them and keep agitating the water. I just couldn't pass up on getting them!
http://cdn.imageserver.c-m-g.us/home...1435770473.jpgThe sun makes the water look so green.
Here's another picture of himhttp://cdn.imageserver.c-m-g.us/home...1435768566.jpg
And our little guy for the tank. When he outgrows it he'll also be moved to the pond. http://cdn.imageserver.c-m-g.us/home...1435768636.jpg

On a sad note I did lose a fan tail goldfish. It was completely my fault too. I took out a bunch of rocks to clean out my hoses and then put them all back when I was done. Sadly, (and I don't know how) my littlest fan tail got pinned under a rock[emoji27] It took me two days to find it. My husband had seen a kingfisher in a tree close to the pond and we just put two and two together. Of course upset that it might hang around and clean the pond out. So it was a slight relief to know it wasn't taken by a predator, but I feel so guilty knowing I killed it[emoji20]

Don't feel guilty, it was an accident, and they happen to everyone eventually.

I have a pleco that is as long as my forearm. He is 12 years old. They will continue to grow to fit the size tank/pond that they are in. No one told me that when I bought him. He is the only fish in my tank now, so I have no idea how big he will get or how long he will live.

Your pond looks amazing! Keep the pics coming...please!

@CountyMom22 Thank you! Your pleco sounds huge! I'd love to see a picture if you have one[emoji4]
From what I've read they get up to 24inchs long! That's a big fish!
I've read so much conflicting information though about the size fish in general will grow. Most seems to show that as long as they receive proper care they all grow to roughly to the expected length no matter the size of their environment. I need to read up more still.

And I'll keep updating[emoji4] This has been a great way for me to keep track of my progress. Between this and a notebook I keep my water quality/care written in I'll have a great way to compare and use as a reference next year[emoji2]

I noticed that too, wish I had such nice soil!

How about growing some watercress? Its delicious and it looks like you might have the setup to do it. I don't know for sure but I would try it because I love the stuff.

Thank you for the suggestion!
I've never had watercress before, but I don't think I'd eat anything grown in this pond. We do add stuff to the water. Even though it says all natural I'm not sure I really trust them enough to eat plants grown in the water. But the plant itself is beautiful. I love the lush green and the little flowers are pretty too. I'll look for it the next time I go to the grocery store. Thanks!

Well I've had some ups and some major downs in the past week or so. One day all my comets in the aquarium were covered in ich[emoji33] It came on so fast even with regular water changes and meds they all died on me[emoji29] Even my little pleco died. Now it's just a plant and snail tank. I'm feeling defeated. I test my water, treat when needed, and keep a regular cleaning routine and still have problems. Here I figured a tank would be much easier then a pond since you don't have outside influences, and you can monitor then so much closer. *smh*

And if that's not enough I've spotted anchor worms on my pond fish[emoji27] I've never come across them before so this will be another big learning curve. I'm waiting on the water treatment and skin meds before I start removing the worms. I'm so worried I'm going to stress them all out having to hold them to remove the worms and do such a big water change at one time. I don't want ich in the pond to flare back up with them being stressed out.

On a happier note while cleaning one of my spitters in the pond I found a baby trapdoor snail hiding in the rocks[emoji2] My snails finally had a baby! And one that the koi haven't eaten. I figured I'd never find any even if they had some since the koi eat everything. Lol. So it's been moved to the snail tank inside. I want to remove as many snails as I can find before I treat the pond. I think the meds I ordered are safe for them, but I'm not 100% sure. All the info said is that it can't be used on fish or invertebrates ment for humane consumption. So I'd rather just remove what I can and hope for the best with any left behind.

I'm so worried about bringing the fish in for the winter now[emoji53]

I'm sorry your fish died and are infested. Maybe the plecos brought in the ich and worms since all were healthy before the new fish were introduced.

Your thread inspired me to really get my little set-up going. Right now I have only a small little "pond" (plastic half whiskey barrel, holds about 13 or 14 gallons) and 3 comets with a bunch of plants. I have the form for a big pond (Lowes biggest) which I wanted to get set up but haven't had the time yet.

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@Danaus29 The pleco's were healthy. The anchor worms(now that I realize what they are) have been around for over a month. I noticed a spot just before we finished our ich treatment. Then it went away so I figured all was well. My mistake!

I've also had a big issue with grackles pooping in the pond[emoji40] Thankfully
For whatever reason they have stopped for now. And from what I read birds eating snails then pooing in the pond can introduce the anchor worms. Yuck! So I really don't know who brought them in. One of my fish, the snails, the birds! It's like a game of clue[emoji6]

And the ich I should have figured I'd run into with a new set up. Never fails really. *sigh* All a part of learning I guess. Now I'm making my list full of "what not to do" [emoji6]

Yay for a new set up! I hope you'll share pictures when you put your big pong in[emoji2] I'm such a picture junky[emoji12][emoji5]️ I love getting to see others designs!

A fun update on my koi: I've started hand feeding. Holding a small fist full of food and then slowly opening my hand just under the water. This keeps the food under my hand so they have to come right up to me if they want the food. It's worked great! The koi are getting braver all the time! And my sons fantail it so brave now. You just stick your fingertip in the water and he'll race up to nibble your finger! [emoji1] I can't wait to get them all just as bold[emoji4]

Yuck, grackle poo. My temporary set-up is real close to the front door so no grackles there.

I know the "now where did that come from" game. It's part of the reason we stopped keeping tropical fish. Never could get them to be vibrant and healthy. I'm really surprised my little comets are still swimming. We've found that they like to eat mosquitoes. When a mosquito lands on us we smack it and drop it in the pond. Those little fish come right to you to eat the mosquito. Pretty cool.

I'm still wondering how I'm going to keep these little comets alive through the winter. Really no place to put them indoors. Not a big enough set-up for outdoor wintering and I'm sure any little pond would freeze solid with the winters we've been having lately.

My mom just kept hers in the basement last year. Nothing but an air pump and de-icer running. Their storage room freezes in the winter so the de-icer keeps the top from freezing. No light even. But they all made it just fine. :) Of course giving them away or selling is always an option. That's kinda what my mom is looking to do this year. She wants to start fresh next year, new pump, total pond scrub down and new fish.

Pictures from today's feeding. Not the best. I took a video but can't seem to put it up.
http://cdn.imageserver.c-m-g.us/home...1436974114.jpghttp://cdn.imageserver.c-m-g.us/home...1436974260.jpg

Still no project progress, but just posting some side by side pictures of the pond and garden in the past three months.
Top is mid May, middle is mid June, and bottom is today. http://cdn.imageserver.c-m-g.us/home...1437432339.jpg

Top is today and bottom was mid may.
http://cdn.imageserver.c-m-g.us/home...1437432482.jpg

We almost lost one of our koi on Saturday. I was out checking the yard after the storm that rolled through on Friday. When I made a lap around the yard and came back to the pond one of my husbands favorite koi was laying motionless in the grass[emoji27] I put her back right away to try and revive her. Thankfully it worked and she seems to be recovering well. Back to swimming and eating like normal. Still has some frayed fins though.

For ich, remove the ichy fish and put into a tank. Let him acclimate to the water, or use your pond water. Add a little bit of salt. There is a formula, so much per gallon. Add a bit at a time. The salt will kill off the ich. I’ve done this with both koi and goldfish. Goldfish can tolerate more salt than koi, so you want to watch it. Salt can also bring back a fish that seems to be sick and sluggish. Salt will kill your plants.

Thank you Maura. I do have salt on hand, but due to my plants and snails have not used it. Instead I've used ich attack and microbe-lift anchor worm and lice treatment. I was contemplating doing salt dips for the fish, but since both parasites young are free swimmers it defeats the purpose and I'm afraid would just stress the fish more.
The ich treatment was great and I'm really hoping this anchor worm treatment will be just as effective. [emoji4]

Well I did my second water treatment today for the anchor worms. The bottle recommends doing 3 treatments a week apart after the first dose. So 2 more to go.
It also says to pull the worms off with tweezers[emoji16] I've been terribly afraid to do this, but decided to try it with the fan tails. After all, I did buy some bio bandage and need to apply it directly on them.

So this is polkadot (top) and no name (bottom) after I pulled the worms off and shortly after applying the bio bandage. http://cdn.imageserver.c-m-g.us/home...1437610403.jpg
The arrows point to cysts where worms were removed or had been. My poor fishies[emoji20]

Beautiful fish! Love the black tips :-). I'm so sorry to hear about all your troubles, sounds like you're doing all you can for them. I've found that comets and koi are too expensive for me, both the initial cost to buy and the time and effort to maintain. I buy a few feeder fish and keep them in my pond year round, with a heater in the winter to keep a breathing hole in the ice. Here in Michigan we've had two record breaking cold winters in a row, resulting in a total die off when my heater couldn't keep up. I lost six large goldfish that had been growing for four years :-(. The upside was taking my
Grandkids to Petco to buy replacements, boy was THAT fun!!! They were so excited! Total cost under three bucks for 40 fish. Some are quite beautiful and brightly colored, and have more than doubled in size this summer. Right now I
Have far too many fish for my small setup, I didn't have the normal die off and loss to predators, but I'm the kind of person that let's nature find it's own balance, as much as possible. Good luck with your poor fishes, I hope all your efforts payoff! Keep
Sharing pics, love seeing your progress :-)

Thank you[emoji4]
So sorry you lost your fish![emoji20] Winter has been very cold here the past few years too. Just another reason I can't see myself wintering my fish outside till I get a 4-5ft deep pond built. My little 2ft pond will freeze solid even with a heater I'm sure!
My comets were feeders too. Haha[emoji5]️ Unless I want a special type of goldfish I can't justify spending any real amount of money on them. The koi we did put some money into. 15$ per 4-6in fish. 16$ for a pond grade mutt from the pet store that was 6-7in. Now she's nearly 11in[emoji15] And my pleco was 25$!
Thinking about how much we have spent on the pond this year is kinda nuts, but the enjoyment we get from it makes it well worth it[emoji4]

Winter does have me a little worried since I'll be keeping them inside and my aquarium didn't go well this summer. It has shaken my confidence. The pool they will be staying in just came yesterday so I'll be setting that up the end of next month. It's going to be a long winter! I hope everyone makes it ok.
I'll keep posting pictures of the pond and the new basement setup next month. I really like being able to come back here and see the time line for how things have gone[emoji4] And hopefully it can help others too. Even if it's as a "what not to do" haha[emoji6][emoji38]

I can't wait for my first water lily bloom to open up! The bud has been above water level for a couple days now so anytime! I'll post pictures of it too!

My first water lily opened yesterday[emoji2] Not the best looking bloom due to aphids having a field day on it[emoji19] Still pretty though. http://cdn.imageserver.c-m-g.us/home...1438551879.jpg

Our two biggest koi. Female and male I believe, 10+ inches long.
http://cdn.imageserver.c-m-g.us/home...1438552105.jpg

And just a shot of the pond. I took my sappy bog plant out. I don't understand why it seems unhappy. It's leaves have gone brown and crunchy, yet it's sitting in 3inches of water. My only guess is the reflection off the water is burning the leaves?
http://cdn.imageserver.c-m-g.us/home...1438552561.jpg

Beautiful! It's matured so much just this season :-) your koi are beautiful, want some now!

Thank you[emoji4] I am very shocked just how much the plants have grown in a matter of a few months! I've tossed out about half of my water plants because it was so crowded[emoji15] I was losing too much oxygen at night. It sure makes the pond look more natural though[emoji2]

I love our mutts! I wasn't thrilled about their color or patterns when we got them, but they have grown on me[emoji6][emoji5]️ If you ever decide to get some look for a nearby farm. Even their culls are nicer then what is at pet stores. And here the price is the same at both. Wish I knew we lived so close to a koi farm when we were In the market for buying. The selection was nearly overwhelming! [emoji7] Someday we'll have the space to go back for more[emoji6]

I finally got a perfect bloom! http://cdn.imageserver.c-m-g.us/home...1439057490.jpg