Investing in your home’s landscape design is one of the best things you can do for your property value. In fact, the right design can add as much as 12.7 percent to your overall resale value.
That said, some elements add more value to your property than others and a beautiful backyard pond is one of them.
Ponds add beauty and are much easier to care for than swimming pools and other water features. However, their maintenance requirements do change from season to season.
Here are a few key things you need to do as part of your summer pond maintenance routine each year.
Monitor Your Water Levels
When the weather starts to warm up and the sun stays in the sky for longer stretches of time, you’ll need to pay attention to the water levels in your pond. The combination of heat and sunlight can cause the water in your pond to evaporate quickly.
As part of your summer pond maintenance routine, start keeping an eye on the water levels in your pond every few days. If you notice the water getting low, top it off as soon as possible.
This will help keep the ecosystem in your pond happy and thriving during the warmer months.
Give Your Landscaping Some TLC
Your landscaping plays a huge role in the health and condition of your pond. When it’s cared for properly, your pond will stay healthier.
Start by making sure the grass around your pond is in good condition. Mow it regularly, but allow the grass to stay a bit taller than you would elsewhere in your yard. This will help prevent erosion and reduces the risk of runoff altering the condition of your water.
If you use fertilizers, take care to use the smallest amount possible and apply it when the weather is clear and sunny. Rain can wash fertilizer off your grass and into your pond, altering the water chemistry and potentially hurting your pond’s ecosystem.
Get Rid of Dead and Dying Plants
As the weather shifts, it’s normal to see a change in the plants that thrive in your pond. Inspect your pond each week and remove any plants that are dead or dying.
Getting rid of those browning plants will do more than just improve the look of your pond. It will also keep the water cleaner and make resources more available for their living counterparts.
If most of the plants in your pond start to fail by midsummer, remove them and start over. Add new water plants to help keep the pond clean naturally.
Give Your Pond a Good Deep Cleaning
Warmer weather may shorten the life of surface plants, but it almost always makes algae growth kick into high gear. The best thing you can do is clear out excess algae growth throughout the summer.
You don’t have to clean it all out every single time. Just remove the larger clumps and get rid of any buildup and grime collecting on the surface of the water.
Remember, you can always add more floating plants to help keep algae growth from becoming a major problem. As a general rule, have enough floating plants to cover a third of your pond’s surface. This will help keep water cooler and reduces the risk of algae blooming at alarming rates.
Deal With Stratification
During the summer, it’s normal for water in your pond to be at different temperatures at different depths. While minor temperature changes aren’t likely to cause problems, dramatic differences can cause the water to settle into layers.
This process gets referred to as stratification and it happens when the water doesn’t move around enough in the pond.
As part of your seasonal pond maintenance routine, find ways to get the water to circulate and move around. Install high-quality aerators to keep water moving automatically. Add beneficial bacteria to your water to keep oxygen levels optimal throughout the season.
Consider a Colorant
Your pond adds beauty to your home, but it’s normal for the color of the water to change during periods of warmer weather. While it’s not necessarily harmful to the pond itself, it can hurt your yard’s appearance.
Instead of waiting for cooler temps to come around, consider adding a colorant to the water. This will immediately restore the look of your pond. Just make sure to use an approved colorant rather than a simple dye you find in a hardware store.
Some solutions can end up hurting the ecosystem in your pond if they’re not formulated properly.
Care for Fish the Right Way
Fish are a wonderful addition to your pond, but their food can pollute the water and increase the amount of scum you’ll see in the pond. Be mindful of how you feed your fish during the summer.
Give them a small portion of food that they can eat in just a few minutes rather than letting pieces float and disintegrate. You may need to feed them more frequently, but doing so will keep the water cleaner, longer.
If you plan on leaving town for more than a few days, make sure you have someone on-hand to feed your fish while you’re gone. Avoid tossing tons of food into the water or overfeeding them leading up to your trip.
Follow these Summer Pond Maintenance Tips
Pond maintenance doesn’t have to be challenging or time-consuming. Keep these summer maintenance tips in mind and you’ll be able to keep your pond looking great all summer long.
Just make sure you use the right products to keep your pond in good condition. Look for products that are specifically designed to work with ponds like yours. This will make your maintenance routine easier throughout the year.
Check out our full line of pond maintenance products and place your order today. Not sure what your pond needs or want advice on choosing the best products for your unique pond? Don’t hesitate to reach out.