Koi ponds, graceful and beautiful and big.

Koi ponds - what do I mean by this. The name koi ponds is reserved for those extra special, highly engineered concrete ponds. Koi ponds tend to be complex in design and devoted to keeping and growing large koi for showing or just pure expensive enjoyment.

If only all koi ponds looked like this!

If you want to grow large koi then small to medium koi ponds are not going to get you there. Despite this typical backyard ponds of a few hundred gallons will also give you great pleasure and enjoyment. Such backyard ponds might just be the stepping stone you need to invest in "proper" koi ponds.

For Nigel's web site and beyond and everything imaginable about koi ponds and that means koi ONLY you cannot do better than go to http://www.koimag.com . This site really is very special as are the people involved in running it. Nigel makes a valid point about koi ponds. He tells me often that koi ponds must contain only 3 things; koi, water and oxygen. No plants are allowed in "real" koi ponds for example.

In my web site any reference to backyard ponds, garden ponds, liner ponds or preformed ponds is in the context that we are talking about smaller (say 100 gallons up to 1,000 gallons ponds). Such backyard ponds are quite capable of holding and growing koi and other pond fish but to a limited extent. To repeat myself. I am not talking about building koi ponds for the real koi enthusiast.

Backyard ponds would generally hold fish, and plants. The serious koi pond does not have any plants in it - they spoil the view of the fish and are not helpful in the quest for absolutely clean and clear water.

Building true koi ponds is for the specialist. Building koi ponds in the garden for casual enjoyment by the family is not.

To be successful in the growing of "jumbo" koi the building of koi ponds must take into account:

	Bottom drains
	Correct shape
	Pond skimmer systems
	Good depth (6ft and more)
	High flow rates
	Winter heating
	Very high and specialised biofiltration capacity
	Spare pumps
	Highly regular and thorough cleaning regimes
	Large air pumps
	Highly specialised feeding regimes

A koi collection is something that we build up over years, and like most collections, it is not possible to complete. And because a pond full of koi is likely to represent a significant investment of both time, heartache and money, the last thing you want is to introduce a koi that could jeopardise what you strived long and hard to achieve. Firstly, before identifying where you should look to buy your koi from, you should be clear as to the quality, class and price bracket of koi you're looking to add your newly-installed second pond. Good, healthy koi can be bought from garden centres as well as specialist koi dealers, the difference being the wants and needs of their customers. Where do you fit in?

I have read your book with interest and have found it most interesting. I wish I had read it before constructing my pond Gordon Powell, seaview@scottburgh.co.za

I read your book cover to cover last night . Excellent, this is just what I was looking for. It is hard to find such a comprehensive collection of information in one place. I have been searching the web for about 4 months. Brett Salavoy, Brett.Salovy@za.didata.com