How to Care For Your Pond Plants in Autumn & Winter
Pond owners face a challenging few months ahead as the temperature drops and conditions change. Disruptions can occur in pond water, plants and livestock, so it’s important to keep a keen eye on what you can do to maintain your pond plants to keep them healthy. Prepare your plants for more fruitful weather by giving them proper care during difficult seasons.
At Discount Leisure Products, we want to help you care for your pond in every possible way. One of the most important things to maintain and care for in your pond is its plants, which play a pivotal role in the pond’s overall health.
Follow our complete guide to learn how to care for your pond plants in cold weather and how it improves your pond’s health and condition heading into spring.
Table of contents
- Will pond plants survive the winter in the UK?
- How to give your pond a winter clean
- Should I leave my pump running during winter?
- Pond treatments at Discount Leisure Products
Will pond plants survive the winter in the UK?
During British winter, many pond plants will lose their leaf growth and revert back to buds, but this shouldn’t be interpreted as the plants dying. This is natural preservation against the cold, harsh weather that autumn and winter bring and your plants will begin to grow again come spring.
However, if left unattended, your pond can become unhealthy and difficult to manage during cold months. Some TLC and a thorough clean are required to ensure your pond has the best chance of starting spring in tip-top condition.
How to give your pond a winter clean
Avoid tainting the water quality in your pond and your wildlife leaving to find a new home by properly cleaning your pond ahead of winter. Your plants can become overcrowded, and weeds can rear their ugly head, harming the water’s oxygen level. Sunlight will also struggle to help an abandoned pond during the winter as it won’t get to the deep water.
Many other issues, such as gathering dead leaves and lingering bacteria, can occur, so knowing how to keep your pond in a beneficial condition when the cold fades is important.
Remove weeds
Use the trusty pond net to gently remove any surface weeds without damaging your plants. Leave the weeds at the side of your pond for a couple of days to allow any animals on them to make their way back to the water safely. You can compost the weeds afterwards.
The challenge is removing the submerged weeds that have gathered and created a tangle under the water. You can use a garden rake to clear these, but you’ll have to be careful not to puncture your pond liner. Ensure you remove any dead leaves from surrounding trees to prevent them from rotting.
Clean the bottom of the pond
It’s grimy, it’s dirty, but it’s an essential job! While cleaning your pond is something you’ll want to put off for months at a time, once you’ve given it a good scrub and clear out, we promise the rewarding feeling once you’ve finished, it’ll all be worth it!It’ll feel especially good when you realise how much you’ve helped the wildlife and the appearance of your pond.
Start by filling buckets of water to temporarily house fish while you clean.
Use a fine mesh net to collect as much sludge as possible and place it in separate buckets. If you have a considerable sludge issue, consider using a pond vacuum to make the challenge easier.
Bring your fish back to the water once the sludge is gone.
Prune water lilies & marginal plants
We don’t get much sunlight in a British winter, so it’s important the little we do get can help our ponds. One way we can help the sun break through the pond is by pruning water lilies and other floating plants. Trimming these back prevents them from blocking the sun.
There’s no harm in slightly trimming your bright plants that shine through during the summer. Cut back all the dead leaves and trim down to the healthy foliage, which not only creates a neater look but avoids any overcrowding.
Divide overgrown & pondside plants
Make more room by dividing your overgrown and pondside plants. You can do this by pulling them up or digging them out. Due to the wet soil, this should be an easy job, but some mature plants may take a bit more work. Wear protective gloves and ensure you get all parts of the plants out; otherwise, they’ll grow back and cause the same issue.
Should I leave my pond pump running during winter?
Keeping your pond water clean and oxygenated is always useful no matter the time of year, but whether you should keep your pond pump running over winter is down to your wildlife. If you have fish, we suggest keeping it on for their benefit, as the pump will help prevent the water from freezing.
If your pond is fish-free, then it’s completely up to you. Leaving it on will ensure you have a clean and healthy pond through the winter, but it may save you some money on your electric bill to turn it off and store it away until spring.
Pond treatments at Discount Leisure Products
Find everything you need to look after your pond and its plants during winter in our extensive range of pond treatments and dechlorinators. While some hard yards must be put in to maintain a healthy pond year-round, some help from specialist treatments and equipment can’t hurt.
Reduce your strain when tackling gunk deep in your pond with sludge remover treatment that tackles the organic waste and converts it into nitrogen, maintaining a perfectly habitable space for your fish.
Find this, green water treatment, pond salt and more to protect your pond through the autumn and winter, ready for it to thrive once again in the warmer months.
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