Carter’s Garden Blog

It’s Wednesday, AKA: Hump Day! The day of the week that I like to blog about Koi. I have spent a lot of time lately blogging about Koi colors & markings and different varieties, etc… Today how about some fun facts… –

Some of my Koi. The Big Sanke in the middle of the pack – right below the Koi with the yellow ‘Ki’ head) is named Jaws 🙂 I got him when he was 15 years old. He lived another 15 years in my Pond and died at the age of 30 or so. A Koi breeder told me thats probably a good average age for a domestic Koi in a backyard Water Garden. | Carters Nursery, Pond & Patio | Jackson, TN

10 Cool Koi Facts –

1- Did you know that Koi and Goldfish aren’t the same species? Koi are descendants of common Carp and weren’t selectively bred until the 1800’s.
2- Goldfish were bred for their beauty and were prized by collectors 100’s of years before Koi were developed.
3- Koi were originally used as a food source. They were originally brought to Japan for this sole purpose.
4- Koi get MUCH larger than Goldfish! The largest measured/recorded Koi was 4 feet in length & weighed over 90 pounds! WOW!

WOW! This is a HUGE Koi! Koi can grow up to 48″ in length and weigh over 50+ pounds…

5- Koi can live a LONG time! The oldest recorded Koi was named ‘Hanako’, (pronounced han-nah-koh) which means ‘Flower Maid’ in Japanese. Hanako lived to be 226 years old! WOW!

6- The aquatic plants in your Koi Pond not only look beautiful and provide natural habitat, they help provide much needed SHADE! Koi sunburn badly!
7- Koi LOVE different foods! Try feeding them lettuce, peas, watermelon and oranges!

It’s time to feed the fish 🙂 Try something different. Koi LOVE fresh fruit and veggies too!

8- We love them for their bright,beautiful colors, but, their colors make them a target for predators like Herons and other birds of prey. Install a ‘Fish Cave’ to give them a place to hide from danger.
9- One female Koi can lay as many as 50,000 eggs during a breeding season! Up to 50% can hatch… WOW! That’s a LOT of babies!
10- Koi are intelligent and trainable! You can easily train your koi to eat from your hand and to ring a bell for a treat! Prety Cool!

I LOVE learning more about my finned friends and I hope you do too!

Happy Pondering! and Merry Christmas!🎄

PS: Koi make a wonderful gift! 🎅🏻