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Keeping mosquitoes out of your garden pond
Vol: 417 Date: October 9th 2004 | previous issues | Unsubscribe at bottom of this e mail .... info@pondsandpumps.co.za .
"Focusing On Gardens"
The Focus Garden Products NEW On-Line Store Is Now Open click here
1. Want a Japanese Koi ... Hannes Uys is shopping as you read now in Japan?
2. Ponds, gardens and mosquitoes
3. New maintenance free pond pumps just arrived
4. Free Offers and Admin section
1. Shopping for Koi? ....Would you like to buy a Japanese Koi ... Hannes Uys is right now in Japan and taking orders via the Internet too?
Japan is the home of the hobby. Japan produces the best quality Koi in the world and there are good reasons why this is set to continue for some time still. Chief of these is breeding stock and the Japanese are acutely aware that by protecting their breeding stock they are protecting their market.
When you buy a Koi, it's bloodline counts considerably more for it's asking price than any other factor. In Japan, breeders are aware from an early age of a Koi's potential, and it is this potential that makes the hobby as elusively tempting as it is. You can never be sure if this 30cm Koi you have bought will develop into a stunner, or just an average Koi. Bloodlines help tilt the scales in your favour however. A good bloodline has a far higher probability of producing a good or exceptional quality Koi than an unknown, or unproven bloodline. This is reflected in the price asked for the Koi.
Hannes Uys owns Cape Koi. He is a genuinely good guy in the Koi business and has recently partnered with Happy Koi which is a JV company between William Kelly and myself with William running this company with a remarkable level of knowledge and enthusiasm.The happykoi web site has added a little extra via the Internet for everyone in the hobby.
Hannes will be sending over photos of the Koi that he encounters on his trip to Japan along with estimated prices. We'll be putting these up on the Web and if you see a Koi that YOU like, and can see yourself owning, book it and it's yours. It'll be the cheapest way of you getting quality Tategoi spotted by Hannes' talented eye. Perhaps it'll be the next SA grand champion. Perhaps it won't. But it almost certainly will be of exceptional quality and direct from breeders in Japan that Hannes has known a long time
The Koi will be flown in locally and quarantined for four weeks in Hannes's ponds in Cape Town. After quarantining, your Koi will be air-freighted to anywhere in the country. Hannes is a member of SAKTA which gives you the assurance that the Koi will be certified KHV free. You will also get a certificate of the Koi's bloodline and breeder. Prices on the website are landed prices in South Africa and a nominal shipping fee will apply for Koi delivery to pretty much anywhere in the country. Thanks to William for this info and initiative
Please go click here to go to Happy Koi and learn more
2. How To Ensure Mosquitoes Are Not A Problem in any Garden Pond
For readers in the Northern Hemisphere this article comes a little bit late but on the other hand is just in time for people like us in South Africa and my many readers in Australia, New Zealand and other places just entering Spring-time. This article will also be an excellent reference for new pond builders who may just be a little bit scared of inviting mosquitoes to their backyard pond areas.
In short don't let the thought of a fishpond becoming a mosquito breeding ground worry you because it won't. Better still reads this article by mosquito warrior Scottie based in Portland Oregon who kindly prepared this article for my readers.
Fish in general in a garden or koi pond eat mosquito larvae and mosquitoes do not lay eggs in moving water
MOSQUITO FARMS? IS THAT WHAT WATER GARDENS ARE? ... DEFINITELY NOT says Scottie Johnson. Read her article here .....
What is nicer than a lovely backyard garden pond. The lush growth rising above the water, graceful fish darting about and the soothing sound of the water. These are just a few of the reasons people are drawn to water gardens.
But when you think about adding a water feature to your garden, you are torn, because you know that a charming pond can also be a mosquito hatchery. And, everyone is concerned; rightly, about mosquitoes and the diseases they spread. It is true, mosquitoes do need water to breed, but at the same time, there are so many effective ways to prevent mosquitoes from breeding in ponds, you should not let that stop you. Water gardeners are in a unique position; they can have wet spaces that can actually help stop mosquitoes from breeding.
Just a few simple precautions are all you need to feel safe and enjoy such a wonderful addition to the landscape.
If you have a water garden, or want one, try these suggestions.
Have moving water in your water garden. Mosquitoes will not lay eggs in running water. The newly hatched mosquito must rest on the waters surface for a few minutes to let its wings dry. If the water is moving, the female mosquito will not lay eggs there.
Get some mosquito fish for your pond. Mosquito fish, or <I>gambusia affinis</I>, are very aggressive predators of mosquito larvae. They are also aggressive to other fish and will also eat dragonfly larvae, or nymphs. If mosquito fish are too predatory for your particular tastes, several other types of fish readily consume mosquito larvae, such as guppies, killifish, and small goldfish. Koi are too large and will not target the larvae.
Add Bti to your pond. Bti is a naturally occurring type of bacillus that is eaten by the mosquito larvae, and rapidly kills them. It is not harmful to fish, pets, wildlife or humans. It is sold under such names as Mosquito Dunks, or Mosquito Bits.
Add dragonfly larvae, or nymphs, to your pond. They are voracious predators of mosquito larvae, and while the mosquito larvae stay in that stage for only a few days, the dragonfly nymphs stay in the larval stage for up to two years, and can prey on many generations of mosquito larvae. And, when they become adults, the dragonfly feeds on adult mosquitoes too.
Invite toads into your yard. One toad can consume up to 100 mosquitoes and slugs per night. They lay their eggs in water, so the pond will attract them. If happy with its environment, a toad can grace your garden for up to 20 years. And the tadpoles will eat mosquito larvae also.
As an overall precaution, get a propane powered mosquito trap, such as the Mosquito Magnet, to reduce the mosquito population in your garden area. These are the most effective mosquito killers around, and they will capture (and kill) the mosquitoes that your natural controls miss.
With the growing concern about mosquito diseases, like West Nile virus, malaria, and dengue fever, it is natural to feel reluctance to add any water source around your home. With the right precautions, you can beautify your garden and still feel secure that you are not inviting mosquitoes into your immediate environment.
If water gardening appeals to you, just educate yourself, take the needed precautions, and get ready to enjoy the beauty and serenity a water feature adds to your home.
Scottie Johnson is a life long mosquito warrior and freelance author. For more detailed information about mosquito kill and having a mosquito free life, please visit her website at www.mosquito-kill-net.com
Copyright 2004, all rights reserved. This article may be duplicated for use provided all biographical information and web links are preserved.
3. Make your pond pump virtually maintenance free
Most pond pumps have a drawback ... and that is the sponge on the suction side that needs cleaning frequently to make sure the pump flow rate is maintained. The sponge blocks quickly owing to algae growth on it especially in warm weather.
The new series of almost maintenance free pond pumps is called "Easy Jet Pond Pumps" to reflect the absence of hassles experienced with most other pumps.
In summary the new pumps are ...
Far more robust and guarantee has been increased form 2 to 3 years
Design is extremely user friendly and modern in appearance and function
Pump has swivel outlet this outlet can be rotated through 90 degrees so that flow can come out of side if necessary instead of the top as is conventional
Head and Volume flow performance is superb
Power consumption is minor
Flows up to 5,000 litres per hour are made possible (my range at present only goes up to 4000 lph)
One model comes equipped with an underwater spotlight built in as an optional extra
To see full details and on-line prices for these pumps click here
You can buy on-line or Ring Brenda or Pauline on 011-454-0105 Information on Alfagrog ... use Alfagrog to improve the biological performance of ANY garden pond filter. Just replace plastic balls or tubes or whatever else might be in your filter with a small amount of Alfagrog.
Without getting too technical this means that 1 litre of Alfagrog can
hold the same amount of bacteria as 200 litres of plastic tubes. In other words
a box using plastic tubes needs to be 200 times bigger in volume than one
containing Alfagrog to get the same biological performance.
Alfagrog looks a bit like cinders, it is lightweight, comes in different sizes and you can literally blow through it because it is so porous.
"The Complete Pond Solver" by Tony Roocroft
2004 Edition. Essential reading for anybody who wants or has a garden pond. Get 12 Excel pond calculators free as well as "Water Lilies and Pond Aquatics" ebook also free
NEW REPRINTED AND IMPROVED VERSION "The Perfect Pond Recipe Book" you can buy this book directly form our office on 011-454-0105. Do take a closer look at Peter's book and information Click here and go to Perfect Pond Recipe Book Page
4. Free Offers and Admin section
Bona fide web masters and web site owners who have a genuine interest in helping people succeed in pond keeping are welcome to publish articles from these Gazettes subject to one simple condition. Please include in the opening to the article the following link. All you need do is copy these 2 lines of code and paste into your HTML
"http://www.practical-water-gardens.com/"
All you need to know about water gardens, ponds, pumps, bio filters and UV lights
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New Focus Garden Products On-Line store You can now buy any Focus product on-line at great prices too and delivered free of charge
Download FREE copy of Introduction to Pond Keeping This is pdf file, 25 pages Right click above save to your hard drive Contact us 011-454-0105 email ... meshord@global.co.za Download pdf report about Nexus and The Answer by William Kelly ... important for serious koi keepers and those with large fish ponds. Right click and select Save Target As ... Take a look at becoming a Dial Direct affiliate ... it takes a minute or so to apply. Or at the very least save yourself some money on your insurance policy by clicking here, learn a lot more then go and fill in the form ...
Buy Phostrogen Lawn Food here What does N:P:K mean in Phostrogen soluble fertilizer? N stands for Nitrogen and is responsible for healthy green foliage. P stands for Phosphorous which is essential for strong root development. K stands for Potassiun (from Latin Kalium hence K) Potassium is the most important element for fruiting and flowering plants. Learn more about Phostrogen soluble fertilizers click here each product shows N, P and K values
Peter Waddington's new book and DVD comilations Koi2Kitchi is about to hit the market and we have been granted South African distribution rights .. the perfect Christmas Present ... if you want to go on list for first batch click here and send email