Oddness in the heartland....

[Ize]

This has got me a bit weirded out....

Ok, long story so here's the Reader's Digest version...

I buy my house 3 years ago this coming October that comes with a small garden pond with 8 large goldfish in it. (NOT Koi) Manage to keep fish alive thru winter and summer... Never clean out pond but clean out filter every other week or so.

Another winter goes by and fish survive.... Last summer while cleaning out the filter, I notice a much SMALLER version of the larger fish in the pond... simple math brought me to NINE fish... Blew me away. Reproduction in my small garden pond. Kewl.... Still never gut the pond to clean it, just clean out filter... Plenty o' algae, fish happy as can be...

Now this Spring... somehow, with minimal assistance from me, fish have survived yet another lovely Central Illinois winter and all 9 are doing just dandy. Pretty proud of myself.

Then I got busy with the spray bottle of RoundUp too close to the pond about 2 months ago, and wiped out all 9 in one fell swoop.... Silly I know, but it depressed the hell out of me for 2 days.... Just stupid on my part, I damn well knew better but wasn't thinking...

So tonight... I'm in the process of cutting out the STUPID F***NG Yucca plant the previous owner had planted next to the pond which is right next to the patio and the yucca grows over the pond. It provided shade for my now long deceased fish... I figure this plant is out of control, and I've had it. There's nothing in the pond, I've kept the pump running just to keep the mosquitos out, but the thing is a slime pit and I'm having people over Sunday so I want the patio cleaned up...

I whacked that sucker down to a nub, but man this thing is beefy... so I haul the edge of it out of the pond so I could figure out what the hell is holding it in place...

That's when I saw the fish...

and that's when I counted at least 8 or 9 MORE fish... all dark, but all unmistakeably goldfish....

I staggered in the house, got SWMBO to come look and she counted 12...

Nearest thing I can figure is their parents spawned before I killed them, and they ended up hatching, and without any other fish to EAT them, they all survived...

I'm a little weirded out by the whole thing, and keep drinking to see if it will settle properly in my mind but so far no luck....

So I figured I'd see what you guys thought. I've had fish in tanks etc, but none that ever bred...

To me this is just plain strange. Then again I can always blame it on beer and feed the fish tomorrow....

(sorry for the long tale)

Ize

 

[Cap'n Jewbeard]

Wait... were the additional fish living in the tree? WTF? Are they still alive? I'm a bit puzzled, though this is definitely a cool story and I'm sorry that fish and RoundUp don't mix.

 

[Ize]

The STUPID F****NG yucca grew out over the small pond... and near as I can figure the fish all sheltered underneath it... I wish I had taken a pic of it before I cut it back.... because it's a nub now... but I let it stay because it's still sheltering the edge of the pond and I think they all nestle underneath it...


As of right now they're all still alive... I cleaned out the filter and pump and added more water to the pond... I'll know more when the sun comes up... Crazy, I know... I mean this thing has just been NEGLECTED because of other projects I've had going, especially since I didn't think anything was living in there after I killed off the other fish!

And no, fish and pesticides definitely DON'T mix....

Ize

 

[Cap'n Jewbeard]

I know it means more work for you, but I think that's pretty great! Almost like, eh, a humbling experience? Life, where shouldn't have been life?

(Not in the way that you find mold on your bread- that's bad).

Hehe- being this tired makes me a hippy. (sigh)

 

[Ize]

I know it means more work for you, but I think that's pretty great! Almost like, eh, a humbling experience? Life, where shouldn't have been life?

(Not in the way that you find mold on your bread- that's bad).

Hehe- being this tired makes me a hippy. (sigh)

Nah you're dead on right.... That's why I was so blown away by the whole thing... I mean, I accidentally took out their parents and lo and behold, here these little buggers are...

Like my brother-in-law (and fave drinking buddy) said to me, evolution's pretty funny ain't it...

I told him to watch my holdings evolve when I whip his a$$ at poker tomorrow night... :rockin:

Ize

 

[david_42]

Murphy's Law of Gardening clearly states that the healthiest things on your property are the things you are trying to kill and the only time something you want will thrive is after you've given up on it and decide to wipe it out and start over.

I was down to two really old gerbils (almost four, which is about 120 in people-years) last year, the last members of a colony of 13. Then in the twilight of their lives they spawned, not one but two litters! Three of those survived and now I have seven.

 

[Nate]

Not odd at all really. We also have a garden pond with goldfish, koi, and catfish. Goldfish are like rabbits. I put 10 feeder goldfish (1/2 inch long) in the pond and within a year, we had around 40 goldfish of all colors.

Also, never underestimate the ability of your fish to hide... even in a small pond. There were numerous times that I wondered if we had any fish in the pond. Several weeks would go by and I wouldn't see anything and then all of a sudden, I see lots of fish.

If I could just keep the great blue heron from cleaning me out every 6 months or so, I'd be happy.

 

[sudsmonkey]

It's the ciiiiiiircle of liiiiiiife!!!! Truly amazing story ! I actually enjoyed reading it. Where in the Hell DID those little fish come from. How did the eggs survive the Roundup? I'm gonna have another one and try to work this one out.

Maybe the yucca played a part?

 

[seyahmit]

Good luck getting rid the yucca plant. We bought our house a little over a year ago. The previous owners loved the yucca. The planted 4 on the side of the house and 2 in front. I dug all of them out, trying to get as much root as possible. Well, I am to this day still digging yucca sprouts almost weekly. I even pour the roundup heavy duty root killer in the hole before I fill back in. They still keep coming back. I joke with SWMBO that after a nuclear war, the only thing left will be roaches and yucca plants.

 

[Ize]

The people who owned this house before I, the woman loved her plants... I mean I have some crap growing along the line of the privacy fence with the guy next door that REFUSES to die.... I mean I like plants but this crap is ridiculous. I just break out the weedeater these days and wade in once a week. I feel better, and I take a little pleasure in knowing she'd be appalled....

They also bought Christmas trees with the root ball attached, then re-planted the trees in the backyard. 2 of the 3 remain, and they look ok. But the sad part is, the best looking one of the bunch had to go. Why? Right next to the freaking house. Who plants a pine right next to a house??????? and this sucker was TALL, but it was drawing every bug known to man and dropping sap everywhere, and wreaking havoc on the gutters like you wouldn't believe... Plus it hung over my neighbors driveway, and as soon as he heard I was gonna get rid of it, he became my best friend... needless to say, he was happy to help me cut it down... (he just didn't want tree sap on the Hydroplane when he rolled it out of the garage... )

But as far as the fish are concerned....

Near as I can figure, they sheltered in the part of the yucca that had grown over the pond... None of them were floating today, so I'm assuming I didn't kill any... As for how they have survived I really don't have any idea, and no matter how much I drink, the little buggers are still there, so they're now part of the family...

I'm going to clean up around it a bit more tomorrow and take some pics... truly stupid I know but it's funny in a way. As for the yucca, it's still gotta go. I'm going to talk to the only fish store in town I trust on Monday and see what advice they might have...


Ize