For many of us, we don't have to overwinter a pond because we don't really have winter. But for many others, winter is coming along soon and you have to start thinking about steps you take before the freezing weather arrives. What about your plants? What about your fish?
What do you do before the snow starts flying?

Some folks build a frame like a window frame with visqueen covering it and they place it over the pond like a cold frame. Tell us your ways of dealing with the cold.

Either remove your tropical water lilies or put them at the bottom of the pond. If you live in an area where the ground freezes, you must remove the tropicals or you will lost them. Hardy lilies can live through anything.

If you feed your fish, stop when the temps drop below 55 degrees F. They are in torpor now and will not eat, so the food just rots in the pond.

Stop feeding water lilies now...October. They are going dormant now reacting to the longer nights and shorter days. Do not encourage new growth unless you are willing to risk losing the lily to cold weather.

It's October. Can you leave your fish in the pond or must you remove them. Watch for overwintering tips in next week's Water Gardening article.

Remove debris that has built up in the bottom of the pond. The toxins released by decomposition can kill your fish if the pond ices over.

If you have tropical water lilies and expect a freeze at night, drop the lilies to the very deepest part of the pond. You can do that for the winter and half the time the tropicals will survive. If you take elaborate precautions...I will discuss these the next article, the lilies will survive about half the time.

If a freeze is coming tonight, turn off your pump. Don't move the warm water from the bottom of the pond to the top. It can kill your fish.

Make sure a hole is left in the ice when the pond freezes. How? See Monday's article on the water gardening web site.