Carter's Water Garden

Question : How many fish can I have in my Water Garden/Pond?

This is a great question! It seems fairly simple, but is a little more complicated to answer without first looking at a few things. Most basic Water Gardens with adequate filtration, aeration & proper plant load are fairly simple to put a # on. There are 2 methods I have learned over the years that work well with comets, shubunkins & other fancy goldfish – The first is 1″ of fish per 10 gallons of water. The other is 1″ of fish per square foot of pond surface area. Both work very well if you have all the prerequisites mentioned earlier (adequate filtration, aeration & proper plant load).

Comets & Shubunkins are beautiful, hardy and unlike Koi, don’t get too big.

Now, if you want to have Koi in your Pond, there are a few more things to consider. Remember – Koi get much larger than Comets and Shubunkins. Koi can get up to 36″ long over time… So if you want to have koi in your pond it has to be of adequate size and depth. Which means more filtration, more aeration, plants, etc. This needs to be considered before you build your pond. You will need a minimum depth of 2′ to keep and raise healthy Koi. I also recommend having a minimum of 1,000 gallons in your system for Koi. One more general rule to follow if you want long term success with Koi – Keep a maximum of 4 Koi per 1,000 gallons of pond volume – So in a 2,500 gallon pond I would recommend no more than 8 – 10 total Koi along with the other criteria mentioned. You could have several other goldfish in this pond too if you wanted. But, you will have to keep a close eye on their growth over time. Their mature size will affect the balance in the future years…

Always think about the future size of your fish! They can get rather large, up to 36″ for a mature Koi.

Just remember, Balance is your friend in the Water Garden!

• Feed good quality food & don’t overfeed.
• Keep your Aquatic Plants healthy and happy.
• Do occasional partial water changes to promote healthier, cleaner water.
• Keep your skimmer clean and functioning properly.
• Do a yearly cleanout service on your pond.
• And keep your fish load within these parameters.

Most importantly – Enjoy your Pond & your Finned Friends Daily!

Thanks, and Happy Pondering!