Maintenance April

If the maintenance as described for March has not been carried out yet, it should be done on short notice. If you did take care of the maintenance for March, great! Then it is time to continue with the pond maintenance of April.

Pond maintenance in April

Snow and rain can significantly lower the hardness of the pond water due to a lack of minerals. That is why checking the quality of the water is important. Bring the hardness back up to standard with GH Plus and KH Plus. GH values ​​between 8° and 12°DH and KH values ​​between 6° and 8°DH are ideal for the pond.

There are various ways to measure the water values ​​yourself. If you want to accurately follow the development of the hardness and acidity, you can use the AquaTesterPro with the accompanying app. A test can be done easily (for example after every heavy rain) with this electronic water meter.

Tip:
If you have no experience with testing your pond water, take your water sample to a garden center to have it analyzed. There are special pond test days at various sales outlets during springtime.

Once you know the water values, you can determine whether you need to make adjustments. This is possible in a sustainable way with Maërl; a natural product that increases hardness and improves water quality. It is better to choose GH Plus and KH Plus if the water has a low value. These are user-friendly resources with quick results.

Tip:
More pond products with a natural origin and effect can be found on Vincia. This product line stands for sustainable pond maintenance with minimal environmental impact.

The days are getting longer and the sun shows itself more often at the end of April. This means that the garden turns green again, unfortunately so does the pond water. The filter and the pump have to be started up again. Sunlight causes algae to grow in the pond, even before the aquatic plants start to grow. It is recommended to install a UV-C lamp in your filter system to kill floating algae. The oxygenating plants benefit from this and will grow better. This way you are assured of clear pond water all year long.

Pond plants

You can add new aquatic plants and lilies during springtime. We recommend you give existing water lilies a new nutrient medium with blue clay and the marsh plants can be propagated by you.

Certain minerals are necessary to obtain a prolonged luxurious growth of pond plants. Especially the tracer element iron is an important growth-stimulating mineral. Naturally, it practically does not occur in pond water. Therefore add iron fertilization.

The right plant baskets and plant soil are important for plant potting. Never use garden soil. This is too rich in nutrients and therefore causes explosive algae growth. Try placing the swamp plants in those nice floating plant baskets for beautifully vegetated islands in the pond.

Fish

When the weather gets warmer the pond fish show themselves more often. At a water temperature above 10°C, the fish become more active which means daily feeding is possible again.  Don’t give them too much food at a time, the fish food should be eaten within a few minutes. You can use easily digestible Season fish food, especially for the transition between the seasons.

Observe the fish closely and watch for any signs of disease. If there are spots and sores present, it is recommended to treat the fish with special medicines.