Michelle is a fellow bunny-lover (remember pics of her French Lop, Tink?) and we’ve been chatting about our fish ponds lately. She lives down south so her pond plants are way ahead of anything happening around my pond. I’ve been wanting to post some current pics, but it looks so barren out there, still. The perennials on the pond’s edge are up and growing, but other than a few volunteer water lilies (yay!) there is nothing but algae. Well, no more algae, actually. We turned on the filter and uv light last weekend, just before we got to the *pea soup* stage after the complete water change we did a few weeks ago. My tiny little goldfish look so lonely and vulnerable out there!

Michelle’s koi look very robust, don’t they? And look at the size of those lily pads! I’m jealous. The plants she calls weeds are Parrot’s Feather and provide cover and spawning surfaces for fish. Parrot’s Feather is tender, so I have to buy it new every year, whereas Michelle thinks she is overrun with it because it doesn’t die back in her warmer climate. I have that problem with mint around my pond; it finds its way into every nook between the rocks and grows with abandon. I yank it out by the handful, which only seems to make it even more vigorous.

Michelle says that she has one koi that she can pet! My little guys are not quite that friendly, but they do like to swim around my legs and nibble on my toes when I’m in the pond cutting back the plants. Mostly I think they’re interested in whatever I stir up along the bottom as I wade through the water. Silly fish.

Thanks, Michelle, for your email and sharing a pic of your waterbabies! I needed the distraction from my bunny-worrying. You’re the best!