Many backyard gardens house goldfish in ponds.
They are hardy enough to survive throughout the year.
If you want one for yourself, there are a few things you should know about keeping goldfish in ponds.
Predators Your fish will be highly exposed to predators when you keep them outside in a pond.
Wild cats usually cause the most problems.
Snakes, dogs, raccoons, and birds can also prey on your fish.
Erecting a fence around the pond will help keep most of these predators at bay.
However, they will do nothing to stop birds from getting to your fish.
Freezing When keeping goldfish in ponds, you also have to worry about the water freezing during the winter.
Your fish are hardy enough to survive as long as the pond is deep enough not to freeze completely in the winter.
For this reason, it's best to make the center area of the pond deeper when constructing it.
Fertilizer It's likely that you'll be using fertilizer in your garden.
You should avoid using it around the pond as it it can get into the water.
If it does, it will increase the level of phosphate and cause excess algae growth.
You should also try to limit the amount of water that runs off into the pond from the surrounding area.
Plants You should try to put plants in when keeping goldfish in ponds.
They provide more oxygen for your fish and shade from the hot sun in the summer.
Another important benefit of having plants in the pond is that they provide your fish with shelter.
This will help reduce the amount of stress they endure.