Pond builder Richard Koogle of Lilypons Water Gardens offers advice on maintaining a water garden. Maintenance for a pond filter is simple. Remove the filter from the water, take off the lid, remove the pads, rinse them in fresh water and place the clean pads back in the filter. When the pads need cleaning, the flow of water from the pump will be reduced. Filters help keep reduce the amount of algae growth, but that function is primarily performed by plants. Algae needs sunlight in order to grow. So if you shade the surface of the water with plants, you'll keep its growth in check. The usual recommendation is to cover two-thirds of the surface of the water with plant material and allow the rest to remain open. There are three basic types of aquatic plants: Water lilies (figure A), which shade the surface of the water with their flat leaves Marginal plants (figure B), including papyrus and canna. These provide a vertical accent to horizontal water lilies. Submerged plants, or oxygenators (figure C) -- the most important group. These plants absorb excess nutrients in the water, reducing the food available for algae. Feed aquatic plants with fertilizer tabs pushed into the soil of their pots once or twice a month. In winter, less-hardy plants should be lowered deeper into the water -- to a depth of at least 9" below the surface. Hardy lilies need no special care. Tropical lilies should be cut off at the tubers -- the walnut-sized growth at the crown of the plant -- and stored in containers in a dark room during the cold months. Floaters such as water hyacinths and water lettuce usually die down to winter buds, which sink to the bottom. Marginal plants should be cut back and brought inside to ensure survival. Snails are also important to the health of a garden pond, as they consume excess organic matter. Stock snails at the rate of one per square foot of surface area. Fish have an important function as well: they eat mosquito larvae. Before introducing fish and snails to a pond, allow the bag they were sold in to float on the surface for a half hour before releasing them. Chlorine in the water kills fish and snails and is hard on plants as well. Use a dechlorinator after filling your pond for the first time.
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