Ponds are absolutely beautiful additions to any garden and really help to increase the variety of both colour and wildlife in our backyards.
But are you properly taking care of your pond?
The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) has urged people to ensure they have prepared their body of water for the coming winter and this means getting your gloves on, potentially donning a fishing costume and getting all that muck out of the deeper parts of the pond.
Yep, it sure isn't pleasant but removing gunk like fallen leaves, litter and other nasties is essential if you want your pond to look spick and span for the Spring.
However, the veracity of your scrubbing should depend on how regularly you have maintained your pond in the past. Smaller features need a once-over every five years, while larger bodies of water need cleaning every ten years.
But if you have fish in your pond, this can get pretty complicated and special considerations must be made to make them last through nasty cold spells in the coming months.
The RHS advises owners to ensure plenty of light gets into the pond by getting rid of overhanging branches and brushing off snow whenever possible.
Not only will this allow submerged plants and algae to photosynthesize and help fish to get the necessary oxygen, but it also prevents the buildup of dirt at the bottom of the pond.
If your water feature freezes over, try melting the ice by placing a hot pan on the hard surface, or invest in a pond heater to prevent this from happening in the first place.
However, you should not smash the ice, as this could send shockwaves through the pond that can kill the fish inside – last we heard was that koi don't taste fantastic, so it'd be a waste to see them perish for no reason!
If you're having problems keeping on top of your gardening this winter, why not invest in a snowblower? We have Stiga Snow Electric Single-Stage blowers from just £179 (including VAT). What a bargain!