The right actions for a pond in autumn

The best practices for managing your pond in autumn. To prepare your pond for the best conditions for next year, you will need a bit of courage, as the risk of frost looms at night. You must absolutely protect the most fragile plants; how?

Protect aquatic plants

Place your fragile plants at a lower level underwater, especially small water lilies. Tropical plants must be brought in away from frost; a basin will do just fine, and it should be placed in a well-lit room (window or horticultural lamp).

Pruning the plants remaining in the pond is not necessary at this time; spring is preferred for this operation. This will allow you to enjoy your plants, which, with the frost, will create an unsuspected effect. Furthermore, the hollow stems will allow for essential gas exchange between the water and the air, even when the pond is frozen.

The mass of vegetation will create a protective zone (microclimate) for the pond's inhabitants as well as for amphibians. Nevertheless, you will need to prune stems that have been broken by the wind or have naturally bent over. Pruning is done 10 cm above the water level, which prevents the plant from rotting due to water infiltration into the hollow stems.

The general rule is to remove anything that could rot in the water, because everything that rots releases methane gas, which can become dangerous for fish when the pond is frozen.

Limit dead leaves in the pond

When leaves start to fall, it is essential to remove dead leaves from the pond, again to prevent them from rotting in the water. You can carry out this operation in different ways:
remove the leaves using a landing net; the operation should be done daily.
place a protective net over the pond: two stakes, a stretched wire, and you make a kind of tent over the pond.

This is very practical because the leaves automatically fall to the bottom of the net. At the end of leaf fall, you simply need to collect them all at the base of the net in one go.

The perimeter of the net is secured using small stakes or camping tent tensioners (be careful with plastic stakes, as they are generally not very sturdy).

Prefer a fine-mesh net of 0.5 cm so that even the smallest leaves will not pass through it and there is no risk of fish or frogs getting tangled in it.

A skimmer is another possibility if it is large enough to handle a large quantity of leaves and if the suction is well-calibrated to create enough current to absorb all the leaves as they fall into the pond.

To my knowledge, only the latest OASE skimmer model is large enough for this type of use. Or a homemade creation.

Pumps and pipes

Pumps should be removed and placed in a bucket of water to avoid the risk of moving parts getting stuck and to prevent the seals from drying out.

To clean the pumps easily, soak them in a solution of OASE AquaActiv PumpClean (the 500 ml bottle makes 10 liters of solution): according to its product sheet, limescale and deposits detach in about 24 hours. Follow the manufacturer's instructions, then remove the grime with a soft brush; the dirt (often algae) comes off without any difficulty.

After cleaning, rinse well with clear water and put the pump back in a bucket of clear water. Pipes should be drained to avoid the risk of damage from frost.

Fish

The most fragile fish should be placed in a sufficiently large cold-water aquarium (such as fantails and other fragile fish). You will need to provide an air pump and filtration.

Currently, investing in a bare tank with accessories is no longer very expensive. Feeding the fish must be intensified to allow them to build up the necessary reserves for overwintering.

Take the opportunity to add vitamins to their food. Beware of overfeeding! It must be removed with a landing net, unless you have a skimmer that will eliminate it automatically.

You can feed them three times a day; if you are not available, use an automatic feeder, because it is better to give a small amount three times rather than a large amount once. When the water temperature approaches 10°C, it is imperative to provide suitable, easily digestible food; let yourself be advised by a professional who has the full range of appropriate products.

When the temperature drops below 8°C, stop feeding except for sturgeons (cold-water fish)