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Journal Mission Bathtub 2019

zozo

Member
Joined
16 Apr 2015
Messages
8,643
Location
Netherlands
Here we go again!!. Time flies when you're having fun.. Almost spring time, early plants are already sprouting new growth. It's again exeptionaly good weather for the time of year, sunny, 10°C in the shades.. Last year it still was far bellow 0° at this time.. Anyway this season, time to clean it up and start it up again already.

The plywood filterbox/planted sump survived the winter realy well and is good to go.
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all winter hardy plants ar slowly comming back, that's a good signal and says ready to take off. Imho that's the secret for any pond setup in the garden. Make sure you have abundand plants that like to grow as soon as and fast possible when the days slowly get longer. In this case already in februari.. Iris, Eriophorum, potentilla, Polygonum and Bog Fern are definitively on that list till now and this list is slowly extending by experience.
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New idea for this year, inspired by the nasty Heron attack from previous year, is a platform at the other rounded end of the tub. It will be filled up with baskets and emersed growing plants.
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It's a steel mesh coated with plastic and it just hangs in the tub half way down. Not only creating a new shallow but also under it lots of room for the fish to hide away safely. And have an entree and exit at both sides.. Actualy more hiding space than they ever had.

Still have the baskets with the somewhat frost sensitive plants indoors. Aand have to buy a bunch of new ones for the left hand shallow. But its still to early for that, tho yet didn't check the local pond shop.

Anyway next weeek it will be partialy up and running to slowly get a head start maturing the filter etc.

:thumbup:
 
Loved your previous bathtub journals and very much looking forward to this one, thanks for always sharing your garden paradise :).

These threads are full of inspiration, even though my outdoor water gardening attempts haven't really amounted to more than floating plants in multiple buckets of water in recent years :lol:.
 
Loved your previous bathtub journals and very much looking forward to this one, thanks for always sharing your garden paradise :).

These threads are full of inspiration .

Thank you too.. :) Glad you like it.. Great to have a place to share all my creazy ideas and still get the feedback that it's inspirational.
That's definitively is a drive to keep going and makes doing it even more fun..
 
Loved your previous bathtub journals and very much looking forward to this one, thanks for always sharing your garden paradise :).

These threads are full of inspiration, even though my outdoor water gardening attempts haven't really amounted to more than floating plants in multiple buckets of water in recent years :lol:.
I second @three-fingers comments. Your bath tub journal is one of my favourite threads on this forum :thumbup: keep up the good work.
 
How’s is looking now with this cold spell ?

Good so far and a bit snowy white.. :)
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Tho the plants are all hardy and sprouting
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Exept the Cyperus alternifolius.. That plant overwintered indoors.. It can survive around -3°C at the roots as long as the roots are submersed and firmly matured and the roots don't fully freeze. Long term deep frost bellow minus 3 will definitively kill it. But i don't expect that to happen anymore this spring.
At least it is still winter for 9 days.. :)
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What fish are you going to put in it ?
Common gold fish..
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And i addopted a black Fancy one with the big balloon eyes this year..
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The fish are still indoors waiting for beter temps and a bit more plant growth.. :) The little planted aqaurium that always stand on the wall behind the tub is also still indoors and in need of a trim before it moves..
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I also addopted about 5 chinese mounten minnows, they also go outdoors and will live in this aqaurium,
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Since i move the fish overwintered in a cool cellar, they will experience a little more temp drop and raise outdoors and go into spawning. I always used to collect eggs and hatch them. What would be interesting is the Fancy goldfish in there now. There will be halfbreeds among them if i do this year. I might just do that and see what the results are and how half brees fancies will look.
 
I think our common name for it is Telescoop eye Fan tail goldfish.. I always wondered why people buy this kind of deformed poor critters.. And also wonder how the hell breeders mannage to keep such a strange birth defect stable in a breed. They also seem to be rather susceptible to skin problems.. At least as far as i know the people i addopted it from tried several of them and always had problems and never a long term succes.

It's a strange world out there, failing each time and keep on trying and buying new ones. I know they had 4 of them a year ago.. And than move on in life, no more room for the one fish left and give it away. The tank i addopted with the fish has blue silicone from the methylene blue used in the past. I have no personal experience with that stuff never needed it. I actualy also do not know if they ever used it on this fish. If its a survivor or a new one again.

Fancy goldfish never where my thing, don't find it beautifull and rather feel sorry for them..

I hope i can keep this baby happy and healthy. At east now it is no longer alone and has over 5 times the volume its used to with friends to socialize with.
:)
 
2 weeks only a tad warmer for a few hours a day does wonders.. Compare the picrures from above taken March 9 last bit if snow fall and today is April 7.
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15° at ground level, a tad higher a bit more in the sun 20°C and the solitairy bees doing the sunshine regae at the hotel, bussy plastering.
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SPring time makes me :woot:
 
2 weeks only a tad warmer for a few hours a day does wonders.. Compare the picrures from above taken March 9 last bit if snow fall and today is April 7.
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15° at ground level, a tad higher a bit more in the sun 20°C and the solitairy bees doing the sunshine regae at the hotel, bussy plastering.
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SPring time makes me :woot:
Thats the first time i have seen a lot of your garden. Looks very nice.
Well kept.
I like that about the ugly black fish.
And your keeping it
Good on yeah.

Sent from my SM-G925F using Tapatalk
 
Another few inches growth added.. :)
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Water lily popping dark red, a color fitting the old half wine barrel..
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That mesh platform elevating the baskets does a perfect job, a nice large cave for te fish bellow to hide safely and a shallow to sunbade above. covered the mesh with cobbles a tad bigger than the mesh size. Now it melts into the scape as one actulay looking quite natural, at last it will later on when the baskets are hidden bellow the trainling plants in it. That i hope creeping Jenny will do.... :) Why did it take me over 3 mission to come up with that idea??. Btw the idea was triggered by the Heron visit last year.. And i'll be darned, misses Heron has a pretty damn good memory, i already spotted it 3 times over again this month chasing it away. The bugger came back eye balling the tub from the roof next door. Yet all is ok, the cave seems to do what it intends to do..
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Fish happily spawning already into teh plants enjoying the springs sun rays.. Again a mesh fence added to prevent them form accidently jumping out while performing their splashy mating dance.. :)
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