November Gardening Four....

...When to turn off the pond pump...

As I suspected, this would prove self evident. I was treated to another frozen wonderland this morning. Unfortunately, the water in my Skippy filter also froze and expanded, causing water to overflow and drain out of the pond. After loosing a couple of inches of water over the course of the morning I realized I'd better turn off the pump and replace it with a small water heater that should keep enough of the surface free of ice to allow the fish to breathe. I also did a little research and it turns out that running the pump will cause the water to mix and cool more than it would if left stationary so it's better for my fish if the water stops circulating.

I'm a little bummed not to have the fountain running. I had come to enjoy my morning ice sculptures. I'd almost like to find a tiny pump that wouldn't circulate much water that I could use to a spray just enough to make cool ice formations!