GardenBanter.co.uk - View Single Post - Give Me Your Ideas/Tips on Building a Pond

27-04-2006, 01:38 PM posted to rec.gardens

wrote in
oups.com:

wrote:
To add interest to my little pond, and to keep the bug
population in check, I figured I'd add some inhabitants.
I figured the best thing to add would be some local
tadpoles, minnows (little bluegills/panfish or whatever
they're called in this part of the country) a couple adult
frogs, and maybe a turtle or two.

Be careful with the turtle. Some varieties might find your
minnows, frogs, and tadpoles tasty.

OTOH, we're building a pond specificly for my almost 2 year
old snapping turtle...
Gamera has no problem noshing down about two dozen 1.5"
minnows in less than 24 hours. sliders, red ears, & map
turtles grow much faster than snappers, so will eat more. if
you want fish & pollywogs, you don't really want a turtle.
you also need to consider hibernation if you have a turtle.
unless you're pond has a deep muck bottom, your turtle will
have to be hibernated inside in a refrigerator (or a spot that
stays at 38-40 degrees F) or it will freeze to death. it is
unhealthy to keep a hibernating species of turtle up all
winter. i hibernate Gamera for at least 6 weeks, but 3-4
months is better... i had a storage issue & his hibernation
tank iced over, so i had to pull him out early this past
winter. if he's awake & can't get to air through ice, he'd
drown.
lee
--
If Tyranny and Oppression come to this land, it will be in the
guise of
fighting a foreign enemy. -James Madison, fourth US president
(1751-1836)