1. Do I feed my fish in the winter?
2. What happens to my pond in the winter?
3. What plants look good during the winter without cutting them back?
4. Can I leave my pump in the pond during the winter?
5. Can I operate my waterfall during the winter?
6. Do my submerged plants overwinter?
7. Will my plants grow in the winter?
8. Will hyacinth and lettuce overwinter?
9. Should I install netting over my pond when the leaves start to fall off the trees in autumn?
10. When should I remove the netting over my pond?
11. What happens to my lotus in the winter?
12. What happens to my water lilies in the winter?
13. What happens to my bog plants in the winter?
14. How can I keep my annual (tropical) water lily over the winter?
15. Will carnivorous plants live through the winter?
16. Will an above ground pond survive the winter?
17. Can I use a heater in the winter to keep my pond open?
18. How can I provide a drinking place for birds during the winter?
19. Should I use a heater and a pump at the same time?
    
20. What happens if my pond freezes over?
21. Can I break the ice if my pond is frozen?
22. Do I need to operate my filter in the winter?

Do I feed my fish in the winter?
Fish are not fed at all when the water temperature drops below 45 degrees. They cannot digest well when temperatures are low. The food will foul the water because the fish will ignore it. When the water is between 45 and 55 degrees, they will eat and can digest foods made primarily with wheat germ. Use only wheat germ foods during cold weather or discontinue feeding altogether.

What happens to my pond in the winter?
As the temperatures drop and the day length shortens, the water temperature drops as well, although not as quickly. This causes the fish to have an increased metabolism and appetite. (Keith, should you let the fish eat more?) For a period of time during the fall, the fish will eat considerably more if allowed. The plants begin to lose more leaves than are being produced. Maintenance practice calls for periodic removal of the yellowing leaves that appear more often when cold. Soon, all of the leaves will be pinched off of the water lilies. Some water gardeners leave their edge plants with dried foliage to give the pond some texture during the winter months. Others cut the plants back if they do not like the appearance of dried leaves. Cutting plants back makes installation of pond netting simpler. At Springdale, we cut openings in the netting where possible to allow the dried foliage to remain for the winter.

What plants look good during the winter without cutting them back?
Some say beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Keep this in mind when considering what looks good for the winter garden. Most plants die back completely and have few leaves that keep enough foliage to dry for the winter. The ones listed below hold some leaves and stems above the water after the plant goes dormant:

• Bamboo, Dwarf
• Bulrush
• Candy Stripe Reed
• Cattail
• Hardy Thalia
• Horsetail
• Ribbon Grass
• Sweetflag, Variegated
• Water Iris

Can I leave my pump in the pond during the winter?
If the pump is located deep enough in the water to avoid freezing, it can be left in the water year round. Remove the pump in shallow water applications where freezing could damage it. While the pump is running it will not freeze unless the power is cut off. Operating the falls during the winter creates interesting ice formations along the stream and spillways. If your pond has a statue or fountainhead, disconnect the pump from the tubing, or remove the fountainhead. The pump makes a miniature geyser that will not freeze even during the deepest of freezes.

Can I operate my waterfall during the winter?
A wintertime waterfall can be a magical display with ice formations building along the gurgling water. Add illumination with low-voltage landscape lighting to enjoy the water feature into the evening hours. Be careful to watch ice build-up so a dam is not created that would divert water out of the falls. Flowing water will not freeze. The splashing droplets will freeze, building ice along the edges of the stream.

Do my submerged plants overwinter?
Submerged oxygenator plants are hardy perennials that overwinter (Is the term overwinter or winter over?) under the ice. The plants cannot actually freeze and survive the winter. The leaves often do not look good after the fish have picked at them during the sunny winter days. Even though the plants are alive after the winter, they are often replaced so they will look better for spring.

Will my plants grow in the winter?
Plants do not do any noticeable growing in the winter months. Some root growth may be occurring. Cold water plants like Water Hawthorne, Parrot's Feather and WaterCress grow earlier than other plants. The Hawthorne has been observed blooming in February in western Virginia.

Will hyacinth and lettuce overwinter?
These two plants are considered annuals and are generally discarded at the end of the season. Some gardeners have had success bringing them through the winter in a greenhouse or artificially heated and lighted aquarium.

Should I install netting over my pond when the leaves start to fall off the trees in autumn?
Netting keeps the bottom of the water free of leaf debris and should be installed in early fall before leaves begin to drop. Hold the netting down tightly around the pond's edge with rock or stakes. A tight net that is held above the water keeps the leaves dry and can be cleaned off with a power leaf blower.

When should I remove the netting over my pond?
Remove the pond netting when the leaves have finished falling for the season. Depending upon the type of trees nearby, the netting could be removed in early winter to early spring. Water gardeners sometimes leave the netting in place all winter, removing it in spring before growth begins.

What happens to my lotus in the winter?
Over-wintering a lotus in the water garden is easy if the pond has sufficient depth for the lotus roots to be under the ice. If the roots do not freeze, the plant will survive the winter anywhere in the United States. Warm, stable temperatures encourage new growth in mid spring. The lotus may be among the last plants to show signs of life and growth.

The farther north the pond, the deeper the ice in the winter. In climate zone 6 (USDA) (will people understand what this zone means) a water garden needs to be at least eighteen inches deep to keep the hardy, perennial plants alive in the winter. (Here in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, a maximum of ten inches of ice has been observed in the period of 1980 through 2000. Springdale Water Gardens is situated at 1900 feet of elevation, with minimum winter temperature occasionally reaching ten degrees or more below zero.) To determine actual freeze depth in your community, consult with local agricultural experts for wintertime information.

What happens to my water lilies in the winter?
Water lilies go dormant during the winter, producing no new leaves until spring. The leaves that are clustered around the soil surface (at the crown of the plant) protect the plant from sun exposure. These should not be removed at any time. Do not apply fertilizer during the dormancy period (October through March).

What happens to my bog plants in the winter?
Bog plants are herbaceous perennials that die back in the winter after the first hard freeze. The plants remain in their original planting level. Potted bog plants are left on the shelf with a few exceptions. Water must be at least six to eight inches or more over pickerel rush, hardy Thalia, and arrowheads. Place plants within the range stated in their descriptions. Cut the dead leaves back unless you want them to dry and remain for winter texture. Do not fertilize from October through March.

How can I keep my annual (tropical) water lily over the winter?
Tropical Lilies are (very difficult) to overwinter, that they are mainly treated as annuals. Many people that have tried end up replacing them annually after they experience the mess and delay in getting to the first flowers.

The water lily root is removed from the pond in fall before the water temperature reaches 55 degrees. Rinse the soil from the roots and remove the walnut shape tuber from the bottom of the root. Sometimes this does not form, and the lily will not be salvageable. Lay the tuber on a wire rack to dry for a few days. Place the dried tuber into a jar of distilled water that is kept at 50-55 degrees.

Set up a pan of water, with a couple inches of sand in the bottom, in a sunny window. An aquarium heater will help you maintain 70-degree water temperature to force sprouting. Bury the tuber right side up in the sand (right at the top). When the tuber sprouts new growth, allow growth to develop to three or four floating leaves. The new plantlet will be attached with an umbilical-like stem below the new root system. Cut this stem and replant the tiny water lily into a small pot of soil that is placed into water that is at least 70 degrees. You may find this takes as much as 60-90 days to the first flower.

Will carnivorous plants live through the winter?
Pitcher plants are hardy in USDA Zone 6, withstanding freezing temperatures. In colder parts of Zone 6, they need the protection of a lightweight mulch or shelter from extreme temperatures.

Will an above ground pond survive the winter?
The above ground pond may be susceptible to freezing, but with sufficient water volume the trouble is minimal. A heater, or pump to move the water, is a good way to prevent excessive ice build-up. Patio ponds that are not heated must be disassembled before freezing weather to avoid splitting the pond sides. Large ponds of 150 gallons or more may be able to survive all but the harshest winter temperatures in hardiness Zone 6 (USDA).

Can I use a heater in the winter to keep my pond open?
A heater keeps a portion of the ponds' surface free of ice. The amount of ice-free area depends upon the actual temperature outside and the power level of the electrical de-icing unit. Floating units are for larger water gardens, whereas submerged heaters with lower power use are used in patio ponds. Except in extreme temperatures, a 500-watt deicer is suitable for an above ground patio pond containing plants and fish. Do not operate a pump at the same time as a heater.

How can I provide a drinking place for birds during the winter?
Water trickling through a waterfall is a natural place for birds to drink during the winter. A heater can be used to maintain some open area for birds to drink from as well. Do not use both, because the heater operates continuously if water is in constant motion.

Should I use a heater and a pump at the same time?
Never operate the heater and pump at the same time. The heater is thermostatically controlled. If cold water is always moving by the thermostat, it never turns off. This uses a lot of electricity and never allows water to warm enough to be ice-free. A pump uses less electricity and can create interesting ice formations in the winter.

What happens if my pond freezes over?
A water garden can freeze over for extended periods of time providing there is not an excessive build-up of leaf debris on the bottom of the pond. Decomposition of the debris depletes oxygen. If the pond is frozen over, the depleted oxygen can not be replenished until the surface opens up. This oxygen stress causes fish loss, not freezing over. Of course, a fish can not freeze and actually live. In our hardiness zone 6 (USDA) we get temperatures that reach ten or more degrees below zero a couple of times during the winter. We have observed no more than ten inches of ice during the worst of winters. The water does not freeze as deep as you might think due to the insulating ability of ice over water and heat from the earth.

Can I break the ice if my pond is frozen?
Do not strike the ice at all. The percussion of breaking ice can cause the fish and frogs to die. If the ice can be broken by pushing through, it is OK, just never hit the ice to break it. Unless there is an excessive accumulation of organic debris on the pond bottom, it is fine to allow the pond to freeze.

Do I need to operate my filter in the winter?
A filter is not really necessary during the winter unless there are a lot of fish that stir the water. Remove the filter media for the winter months, operating the pump with a screen over the inlet or just an empty filter box. Scrape the inlet screen to clean as needed, maintaining full flow into the pump.