The first couple weeks in March have been warm. The pond temperature is currently 45.9 ° F. Birds are visiting the pond and the irises in the yard are starting to poke up their green leaves!
The March Pond - In Colorado
The pond has clear water but has beard algae and string algae. It is still too early in the season for the plants to be grown out and doing their primary job, filtering the water! The algae is taking this opportunity to use the nutrients available without interference from bacteria or plants. (Read more about types of algae by clicking on this sentence!)
The fish are becoming much more active and it’s getting really tempting to feed them. Remember that we need to wait until the water temperatures are consistently at and above 50°. Their metabolisms are a running more slowly now and they can’t digest the food well. They will nibble off algae in the pond which is easily digestible. There is cold water koi food that has lower amounts of protein and therefore more easily digestible. I recommend that you don’t use it unless you really know what you are doing! Feeding fish too early can lead to fish loss.
What to do for the Pond in March
You will reap the benefit of taking pond care steps now.
Clean the skimmer basket or net. It may be full of leaves!
Add cold water beneficial bacteria while the water is still under 50°. After that start using regular bacteria treatments weekly.
Remove string algae you can easily get to just so it doesn’t overwhelm the pond. Every inch of it does not have to be removed, it is helping to keep the pond clean by consuming nutrients. And don’t freak out about the algae yet!
Kristi's Tips
DO NOT use algaecide! It de-oxygenates the water and can put your fish at risk.
Keep waterlily pots. Don’t throw them out. They should awake and start to grow soon.
Hold off on feeding the fish.
Determine if you want to get the pond cleaned out this year. Read WHEN to Clean Out the Pond.
Call your pond company to get on the schedule now! (I hope that’s us by the way….)
* This blog was NOT written by AI. This was written by me. I am not a professional writer, I am a pond person. Therefore, if you see a typo, please forgive me!
*No koi were harmed in the making of this content.