The Pond at breakfast time

lol Brilliant~!!!!

I hope you are catch and release. But in case you are not, I like blueberry pancakes with maple with maple syrup for breakfast.

Loostrife
the one on the line is not Real.
I am not a fisherman

That's brilliant Brian I shouted to OH to come to read it as he's the one who looks after the fish I could hear him laughing from where I was in the kitchen :o))

Your fish are almost as characterful as Jamie but the foliage around the pond is spectacular. Great photos as usual.

It looks lovely - lots to see and enjoy.

They look ever so healthy. Fish don't seem to need an awful lot of depth do they....as long as it doesn't freeze solid all the way down they are fine. Mind you....I once had a very sick fish, and was advised the nicest way to put it out of it's misery was to freeze it. So I did freeze the poor thing. But I forgot about it, and it defrosted and blow me, the brighter came back to life. It had been frozen for hours too. Most upsetting! Eventually It went the way of the toilet flush. :/

It all looks very attractive. I was interested to see your marginals - are those hartshorns you have actually growing in submerged baskets? Would be interested to hear what other plants you have there.
You are fortunate to be able to keep such bright fish - the heron would be onto them in a flash here!

Lovely fish Brian, is that a Ghost Koi? I was also trying to make out whether the fern was actually in the pond or growing at the edge..
Know exactly what you mean about their food, mine expect it everytime we stand at the edge, needless to say they are disappointed as we only feed them once a day..Just trying to remember the depth of our pond, I think its about the same and the fish are also healthy and happy, some of ours started out in an aquarium indoors so must be well over 25yrs old...

Steragram none are actually in the pond all are in soil around the perimeter,What I think you are referring to is a woodland fern here I think they call it Harts Tongue, that is self seeded, there are many more around the garden, there is also the welsh poppy seed pods again self seeded, a Yew to the left which has to be pruned each year as do the Maples,zebra grass thrives but just out of shot and one end is taken over by Omphalodes providing a blue carpet in spring.
We do have Herons around but up to now never seen them venture under the canopy of trees thank goodness.
B

lincslass yes they do seem to live to a good age if the situation suits them.
Yes a ghost no scales

brilliant, Bjs. Do you get probs with evaporation in hot weather and having to top-up the water level?

Yes that's what I meant. They grow widely round here too. Thank you for the other suggestions. Do you find the omphalodes gets scruffy at this time of year? I think our pond will be too hot for it in summer. Oh gosh, yours looks so peaceful and shady - I hope ours can look as good.

Fran yes it is dropping by about an inch a day this week

Steragram
Would suggest a small tree or shrub to hold back the midday sun will help lower the water temperature may also help preventing the water going green although a pump is a must for that.

We've never had a pump in other ponds - the water hasn't been crystal clear but not murky green either. Its really too far from the house to start putting cables in. Yes a small tree or shrub would be very good- what do you think of a of a buddleja, being easy to control the height, and then I was thinking one or two ferns near the edge on the South side. Haven't really looked at suitable varieties yet but there are a few evergreen ones that might be nice.

Steragram
I wouldn't personal favour Buddleia because they are so fast growing and the flowers I imagine would make a mess in the water.but no real reason not to use it.if you did go with a Bud I would be inclined to plant a maple either side and remove the Bud in a couple of years,I say maples because they are easy to train in the direction you require. and most grow surprisingly fast.
Pumps well if you are not planning on fish your water plants will probably provide enough ,however a solar pump is very useful in warm weather, I use in a small solar in a pond with goldfish .
What Ferns do you have in mind, tell me before you buy.
B

Steragram
I was half asleep last night when I wrote the above hope it makes sense

Yes it does and is much appreciated.
I had some concerns about buddleja flowers dropping in the water but to get some shade over the water in midsummer we will need something a good eight feet tall,(My shadow was way too short when I stood a couple of feet away) so the quick growth was what i was after, plus the knowledge that it could be cut hard back when necessary. There is a mature 5'6" conifer hedge a couple of metres on the south side (no we didn't plant it!) and the shade from that doesn't anything near reach it (Of course its in shade from it all day in winter until about March) Maples would look much nicer but the ground there is very dry and again they would be in full sun much of the day during the hottest part of the year. Also we get a lot of strong winds in winter, not all from the SW. What do you think?

It is very kind of you to advise me on ferns. I looked at Long Acre Plant's selection of four evergreen ones and they seem to be what I was after, but haven't looked at whether they will mind dry conditions. I know drypoteris felis mas are good in the dry but they are weeds here and I really don't need any more! I did put an astilbe at the edge of the pond but it is very unhappy - astilbes just don't get enough moisture here, which is ironic considering the high annual rainfall. So I need things that look like moisture lovers but are happy in the dry and will stand hot midsummer sun when we occasionally get it ! How about polysticum?
Would one of the Japanese painted ones survive there?

Not much to ask is it....

I have an aquarium aerator in my lower pond which helps to oxygenate the water in summer and also helps keep an air hole open in the winter if the water freezes. This is where I have my fish. The pump is on a battery which is solar powered. It feeds the water from the bottom pond to a fountain in the top pond, which then cascades (dribbles) down to the lower. This loses water from evaporation, so doesn't get used that often. Rain water from the conservatory roof feeds into the lower pond. I have had to top up the ponds by hose a week ago. Forecast is for rain tonight (Friday) or it will be the hose again.
Ps the ponds are preformed, so no moisture loving plants around. Have Ogripodium, Festuca and some small grasses around.

Siris
have a similar set up in a small pond but settled for a small Solar fountain rather than an oxygenating block. Never considered adding oxygen that way ,I would need to keep it off the bottom as the fish create to much deberie at this time of year, thanks for that thought.
B

The oxygenating block is on a short stumpy pipe nowhere near the bottom, so doesn't cause a problem with mud/debris being churned up. Actually I have the pipe thro' a stone with a hole in the centre to stop the block coming to the surface. S

Brian, the pond and koi look great. I have to ask though, have been been "cross breeding" your gold fish with a salmon? If not, how did you get the gold fish to leap that high? ..... lol. Great blog. Thank you.