African Cichlid Pond

[Goodcreature]

I've been doing a little research, and I think that Labidochromis Caeruleus would be a pretty good choice, since in their natural habitat they feed on algae and insects, as well as snails, are less aggressive than most Mbuna, and don't bloat quite as easily as other algae grazers might. Also, they are available at my LFS, and if not there, for sure at my local Petco. Does this sound okay?

 

[fshfanatic]

Those would work or you could get a colony of Birchardi going.

 

[Goodcreature]

When I was first wanting an African tank, one of the first species I was considering was Brichardi. I believe the only reason I couldn't attempt them though was that there was no market for them around here; I couldn't buy them anywhere, nor could I sell, or even give any away when they would have bred. They would have been nice to keep though, especially in a pond environment.:cry:

 

[garyfla]

Hi
Curious as to the choice of "lilies'? That small a pond will have a lot of limits , What will you be growing them for ??
Flowers, edible ,aromas?? Tropical/ temperate?? day /night flowering There are some super dwarf species that can be contained at under a square foot but flower choices is very limited There are some dwarf tropicals but to flower well they require around 3 square feet Most of the tropicals are sensitive to temps below 45 but they will survive down to freezing
Temperates can survive well below freezing but of course go completely dormant. Not sure a dormant period is necessary but is beneficial for sure. I've always stuck with trops due to the greater choice of colors forms and growth habits. There are some that will not tolerate temps brlow 60!!! best to stay away from those .
There are 100's of natural species as well as thousands of hybrids to choose from . You'll want to pick those that fit best into your environment gary

 

[Goodcreature]

My parents just said that we had to have a lily; they didn't give any particular kind or anything. I'm pretty sure they only want it so that it will look nice in the pond, not for aroma, and the ones they're drawn to are the types with the large flowers. But, it also has to be able to survive the freezing temps we get in the winter, with the lowest ever being only around 20*F at night, but only for around a week out of the year. (I forgot in my earlier post to mention the nightly temps, and only gave those during the day.) Not quite sure about the size yet, but I'll go out and try to get an idea of how much square footage I want the lily to cover. Until then, I don't think a dwarf lily would be large enough, but I believe two "average" size lilies, if there is such a thing, would do fine.

At the local pond store, they have quite a few lilies to choose from, but they're all at least $35, with some going at $45 and $75. Is there an online seller for lilies that I can expect a lower price from?

Thanks for your help guys.

 

[Goodcreature]

Okay, I'm thinking for the pond that we might want a lily plant that covers about 6-7 square feet. If I can't find one, or if they're too pricey, I can use multiple smaller lilies to get the coverage I want. I'm gonna keep looking for a species, but if you guys can think of any, please let me know. Thanks.

 

[garyfla]

Hi
Need some clarification. You intend to bring the fish in during winter?? Or are you heating the pool??
What will be the surface area and depth?? So you will bring the fish in and overwinter the plants in the pond??
Or other method?? Would suppose you intend to grow the lillies potted??
As to the price since lilies are the only plant I ever made a dime on I tended to think them too cheap lol
Can't recommend any hardies or a source but definitely don't get them at the box stores. They generally run at least 10 bucks up So i guess you're left with the internet?? good luck gary

 

[Goodcreature]

Thank you for the reply! The fish will coming inside during the winter, and the pond will be unheated. The plants will be in the pond all year, hence the need for them to be tolerant of freezing temperatures. The surface area of the pond will be around 50-60 square feet, with the minimum depth being 2 feet, and the maximum being 2.5-3 feet. As far as I know, the lilies will be potted, unless there's a better way of doing it. There also might be some potted bog grass or reed of some sort, but I don't know yet. That pretty much sums up what I know about pond plants, so I'm trying to study the topic more. I believe that I will soon have a list of possible plant species, so I'll post that here as soon as I have it. Thanks.

 

[Goodcreature]

I found out that the pond place I went to has a "miscellaneous" hardy lily section, and those are all $20. I think I might check it out. I was looking at their selection of lilies and all of them see like they would work except for "Perry's Baby Red," which is a bit small for what I'm looking for.

Still haven't found a good grass though.

 

[fshfanatic]

any updates?