It’s late October and the leaf drop in the backyard is well underway. The netting on the pond has paid off handsomely although next year I will use heavier PVC pipe and even possibly build a PVC greenhouse over the big pond. As far as I can tell, the pond bottom is  very clean with few if any leaves that made it to the bottom.

The issue now is getting the ponds ready for the winter. This means preparing the plants for winter and slowing, and finally stopping the fish feeding.

So this weekend (10/20-21), I climbed into the pond, hopefully for the last time this year (the water is really cold now) and pulled out the lily and parrot feather pots, installed plastic coated aluminum wire handles on the pots and lowered them onto the pond floor with long wire leads and tied the above water ends to a wire loop for easier retrieval in the spring.

It’s also time to begin netting out the water hyacinth and water lettuce as it starts showing signs of wear and tear (and frost rot around the fringes).

There is a great debate among ponders about keeping the plumbing going all winter or shutting it off and draining the system.

In the interest of curiosity (and also sloth), I have chosen to run the system this winter, hoping that it will be a mild one.

Maggie thought it was all such a bore.

Thanksgiving 11/22/01: This has been one of the warmest autumns on record in the Tri-state area. The last few days were the first of the killing frosts. The leaf drop is just about done. I’d guess in one week or so, the netting can come off. Water temperature is in the lower 50’s now and the goldfish are hanging deeper and deeper. Still experiencing a fair amount of evaporation from breezes and low humidity. I keep having to top off a little every week or so.

12/27/01: The winter has kicked in with below freezing temps and wind and even a few snow flurries. There’s ice on the ponds.

The Red and White Fantail got a reprieve from the cold and is wintering over in a small aquarium, but the commoners are at the bottom of the lower pond under a little ice here and there.

 The stream is fast enough that it hasn’t frozen yet and might not, and the fish have plenty of open water in the pond below at the waterfall and skimmer. There’s something to be said about ponds with a skim of ice, the sound of running water and the first snow flurries. It escapes me for the moment however.