Two Rubber Ducks & A Gold Fish In A Christmas Tree

Are you in the market for a water-garden-themed Christmas tree? Maybe you don't even know that you are, but have we got news for you!

We finally got our act together this year and created one to be a part of the Tioga County Historical Society's "O Tannenbaum" Holiday Showcase and Auction. Between now and December 18th, 2010, you can visit the Tioga County Historical Society Museum (TCHS) in Owego, NY and place a "silent auction" bid on any of the 85+ trees, 25+ wreaths, and dozens of various other items that are available for purchase or to be given away as raffle prizes. All of the proceeds from the event benefit the TCHS.

Our water-colored entry is entitled "Winter Water Wonderland." Decorated with waterlilies, fish, frogs, dragonflies, ducks, and other nature-inspired items, the three-and-a-half foot tall tree also comes with a $50 gift certificate to be used right here at Totalily Water Gardens. We actually commissioned the fish ornaments featured below to be made by an artist in Seattle, WA. They're made out of origami paper that's wrapped around a glass ornament and we think they're absolutely SPECTACULAR!

Be sure to check out the TCHS's website for additional details as there are a number of wonderful musical and Children's Day events coinciding with the O Tannenbaum fundraiser. You can also see the "Trains of Yesteryear" and the "Teddy Bear Did It" display while you're at the Museum. There truly is something to see and do for everyone, of every age.

"Hoppy" holidays, from our pond to yours!!!

Success (or so WE think)!!!

Well - it's three weeks later and we're VERY happy to be able to report that the installation of the new ultraviolet lights and upgraded skimmer have successfully "kicked the green liquid blobs butt!" We actually had our wits about us enough to take photos at one week intervals to be able to monitor the progress. See what you think.....

Week #1: Going.....

Week #2: .....going.....

Week #3: .....GONE!

Update: Green, Green HOPEFULLY Going Away.....

We mentioned in out last blog post that we'd be installing a new skimmer system "sometime in the next few weeks." There was just no way we could stand to look at the green liquid blob that was once the focal point of our display area for yet one more day (forget about WEEKS!), so this past Wednesday we began the renovation work.

We documented the entire process by taking hundreds of photographs (what DID we do before digital cameras became such an integral part of life?!?). We tried to pick out the main ones to post here so that anyone else who one day faces either adding or upgrading a skimmer system can see just what's involved. We hope it helps in some small way.

The ultraviolet lights arrived here on Thursday so they've only been running for approximately 48 hours. We can at least start to see the rocks on the first shelf in the pond, as well as the fish before they break the surface of the water, so there has been some progress with defeating the microscopic blobs of green that have been causing us to rip out what little hair we have left. Hopefully by this time next week we'll be able to report that the upgrade was a HUGE success. Until then, we'll take it one dying, single-celled algae at a time.....


Pre-renovation......what a HORRID shade of green!!!



The old skimmer system
(Pond Supplies of America brand, ~12-years-old)



After lowering the water level, detaching the liner from the old skimmer, and cleaning out the skimmer



Digging out around the old skimmer box



The hole after having removed the old skimmer box



Determining the height of the new skimmer box
to set the water level



Leveling the new skimmer box



Attaching the face plate on the new skimmer box.
Notice the old holes in the liner are ABOVE the new face plate to avoid any possible leaks. Trim the extra liner ONLY after attaching the face plate.



After refilling the pond to the preset water level
as demarcated on the new skimmer box



Getting the ultraviolet lights ready
(These are Savio 50 watt UVinex kits - we used two of them)



Putting the ultraviolet lights in the new skimmer box



Remulching around the new skimmer box



Sitting back and waiting as patiently as possible
for clear water to return

Green, Green, Go Away!

If you've visited us anytime in the last few weeks, you've seen the "green liquid monster" that was once our nice clean main display pond. Usually, at this time of year, you'd be able to see a quarter at the bottom of the three-foot deep pond, but NOT this year. Sigh.....what a mess.

It's actually hard to capture in a photograph just HOW green it is. If you look closely at the water coming over the waterfall though, you can see the pea-soup appearance that's been haunting us for the last month or so. The beauty of the Wood's Blue Goddess waterlily that's in the photo below is completely ruined by the green backdrop, but it does serve to show you how bad the problem has become.

What to do, what to do? You'd think a water garden center wouldn't have such a problem, but yes - even the "experts" get it wrong sometimes. The problem is - we don't yet know exactly WHAT it is that's the problem. We've been running the pump and filter 24/7, adding bacteria, working on increasing the amount of surface coverage by plants, and even relying on algaecides to help (something that's ALWAYS been a last resort for us to use), but nothing seems to be working. Tim even strapped on his chest waders one day and went scooping to see how much "litter" we might have built up on the bottom of the pond, but there wasn't ANYTHING!

Tim seems to think it's probably a combination of perhaps having too many fish (or at least ones that are too large for the system to handle anymore) and/or the odd weather that we've been having (it got way too warm too early in the season for the plants to get a good foothold on the amount of sunlight hitting the pond, as well as the constant influx of nutrient-rich rain that keeps "feeding" the algae).

Regardless of WHAT it is, after giving it a lot of thought, we've decided to do some renovation work to upgrade the mechanics of the pond. Sometime in the next few weeks, we'll be draining the pond down a little, ripping out the old skimmer box, and installing a new skimmer system that will allow us to use UV lights to help get the green under control (another last ditch effort, but one that should solve the problem once and for all).

Until then, we apologize for not setting the best example of how to create (and keep!) a nice crystal clear water garden. Some folks really don't mind the more "natural" appearance and we're happy about that, but we do realize that it's not the most popular option. We'll keep you updated on the progress of our renovation by blogging about the process as it unfolds. Hopefully, it will all be good news!

For now, we'll try to stop focusing on (and freaking out about!) the green monster. Instead, we'll leave you with a few photos of what we think are some of the pretty sights you can still enjoy if you visit us in the near future.

It's About Blooming Time

It's that wonderful time of the year when flowers are starting to pop out all over the place around here. Not just aquatic plants, but those in our 'landlocked' plant beds too. Of course, we're biased, but we think Totalily is such a beautiful place to visit. And no - you don't need to have a water garden or plans to put one in to stop and see for yourself just what we're talking about. Feel free to simply wander around or have a seat in the shade and enjoy the sights and sounds. We'll be happy to just let you linger in your own thoughts. Until then, we hope you enjoy some of the recent photos we've taken. We'll let them do the talking for us. For those of you that are curious though, that's a Pink Grapefruit hardy waterlily in the photo above.

Water Forget-Me-Not

Golden Candles "Alexander"

Poppies

Ribbon Grass

Snow-On-The-Mountain

Charlene Strawn Hardy Waterlily

Multiflora Rose

It's A Good Time To Be A Frog

It only seems appropriate that we would re-open for the season during National Frog Month. We also love the fact that the very first "frog-related craft or activity" that's mentioned on the eHow website to get people in the spirit of Frog Month is to "make a frog pond to attract frogs to your backyard."

Sitting here at the end of TWG's first day for 2010 - just lazily listening to the heart-lifting, high-pitched chorus of the peepers that have chosen to hang out in the natural wetlands on our property (and that are located waaaaay out back, far from the commotion of the shop) - I can't help but think that it's a really good time to be a frog. As goes the water-gardening world, so potentially goes the way of the frog, right??? Knowing how dedicated our TWG pond pals are and how the popularity of water gardening continues to grow, I truly do believe that the frog community is 'safe' from a major population decline, at least for a little while longer.

We also like to think that, somehow, the blood, sweat, and tears that we've poured into making TWG what it is today, has somewhat benefited the planet, if only in a teeny tiny way. Maybe we're just dreamers though. Oh well - it's a nice thought. One that really does help us get through each busy pond season.

And here's to yet another great year - chatting with fellow pond lovers and enjoying the company and appreciating the never-ending hard work of our employees - all of whom we really do consider family and friends. We sincerely hope that this pond season provides you with many opportunities to just kick back, relax, and revel in the sound of the frogs that have chosen your life-providing pond as their heavenly habitat.

Yep - it's a good time to be a frog. It's an even better time to be in love with water gardening.

Winding Down the Season

Here it is - almost October - and as expected, life at Totalily is starting to wind down. One of the most noticeable changes is that the employees (whom we consider to be dear friends) are all gone for the season and we miss them dearly. Their energy and enthusiasm truly keeps us going during the busy days of summer.

The silence is almost deafening, not only because it's quieter without them around, but we now occasionally turn the pond pumps off on the ever-cooler nights. With the cool rains and blustery winds these last few days, we'll also need to think about putting the temporary net over the pond someday soon. It never looks very nice, but it does really help cut down on our Spring start-up work.

Not sure what we're talking about? Here's a picture of our set-up (and you can also read more about it in our Autumn and Winter Maintenance handout). We'll take it all down once the majority of the leaves have fallen.

Another noticeable difference is that the greenhouses are completely empty now. The remaining marginals and lilies have all been moved to the rear propagation ponds to sleep away the winter months. It always looks so barren around here at this time of the year. What else can we expect?

We do still need to remove the MANY water hyacinths though before the frost hits them super hard and they sink to the bottom of the ponds. If we don't, they can actually give off a toxic amount of methane gas as they decompose under the snow and ice. We learned that the hard way one year when our fish population took a "hit" when we didn't remove the hyacinths in time. Please learn from our mistake!

Some folks try to overwinter their hyacinths inside under grow lights and/or in a warm room. We've tried that too, but it usually costs more to keep them toasty and happy than it is to simply replace them next year. Plus, they usually die just about the time Spring arrives. Sigh....yet another lesson learned. Such is the life of a ponderer, right?!?

However you spend them, we hope your Autumn pond days are enjoyable ones. If you need us, we'll still be here on weekends until the end of October. You can also always call during the week and leave a message and we'll get back to you ASAP. If you're on our eNews mailing list, keep watching your inboxes as we'll be sending out a notice someday soon announcing the details of yet two more great sales we'll be having before the end of the year.

Until we chat again......