New Pond Observation Log

• The goal is to create a sustainable water system that does not require pumps and filters
• Tank 1 - Side of the house, low sunlight, nothing overhead
• Tank 2 - Corner of the garden further away, more sunlight, under a ficus tree
• Week 1
• Just filled 2 300 gal tanks, no bubbler, no filter, no pump
• Let them sit for 3 days to let the chlorine evaporate, then put a few floating plants - lettuce, hyacinth, foxtail.
• A few leaves fell in from the surrounding trees, i left them
• Water stayed generally clear,started to get slightly cloudy by the end of the week
• Week 2
• Added 4 fish to each pond, 2 hillaries, 2 comets, mainly to prevent mosquitoes
• Fish were very scared, and just sat at the bottom of the tank for 2-3 days
• By the 4-5th day, the fish were happily swimming about and eating normally, and showed no signs of struggling to breathe, or lack of oxygen
• One of the hillaries had babies, i counted about 8 fry hiding among the plants
• Added a few more plants, some young papyrus, a couple lilies, amazon swordplants, other random plants
• Water started turning green
• By the end of the week, the pond was completely green, and i could not see the bottom
• No algae had started growing on the sides of the tanks
• Week 3
• Water continues to get greener and more opaque each day
• Fish seem to be enjoying it more and more, and seem quite happy in the green water
• Fry are getting larger, and seem to be safe in the floating plants
• Algae still has not started growing on the sides of the tanks
• Week 4
• Water seems to have reached a stable level of green, with visibility going about 6 inches
• The second tank has also spawned Hillary fry
• I have noticed a consistent stream of bubbles coming from a bunch of foxtails i planted in a sunken pot.
• I added more floating plants for the fry, and to reduce sun exposure
• Algae has not started growing on the sides as yet
• Put some Basil stalks through the lettuce to float in an attempt to get floating Basil. 
• After 2 days, they have sprouted roots, we'll see how long they last.
• The neighbour's cat seems to have discovered the tanks, and spent a night beating up the side of the tank
• There is no way for it to get over the lip without falling in
• It gave up at around 5am, we'll keep an eye out for him
• Week 5
• Algae has stabilized at around 6-inch visibility
• Floating lettuce is noteceably yellower than when it was first introduced, suggesting that this pond does not have as much ammonia/nitrate/nitrite than the pond they came from, as would be expected
• Another possibility is that the top layer of water is relatively nutrient free, while all the nutrients are settling in the bottom layers
• Basil has survived, and started sending out roots
• Added a handful of watercress in an attempt to introduce microscopic life such as trumpet snails, brine shrimp and seed shrimp
• http://www.planetinverts.com/what_is_that_bug_in_my_aquarium.html
• The lack of circulation does not seem to currently affect the fish. They happily move through all of the layers without taking air from the surface.
• Papyrus still has not shown any signs of rooting
• Algae has not rooted onto the sides of the tanks as yet, although there seems to be some sort of mineral deposit collecting on the sides. It is sandy to the touch, and comes off easily when rubbed. Possibly calcium deposits on the waterline, but the deposits can be felt deeper under the surface all along the sides of the tank, not only on the waterline.
• Week 6
• Algae has receded in one pond to 2-foot visibility (can barely see the bottom). Almost half the surface is covered in lettuce
• The other pond under the ficus tree still has only 2-6-inch visibility. Half the pond is covered by Ficus, the other half is covered by lettuce, so it has to be the amount of leaf litter falling into the pond causing more algae than usual. Hopefully the papyrus will correct this.
• Papyrus has roots in one of the ponds, and is sending out shoots
• One overhanging Ficus tree has dropped some roots into one pond, think i'll leave them there as long as they're pulling out ammonia
• Basil has started growing, very slowly
• Algae still has not grown on any surfaces
• Watercress has been almost completely consumed by the fish, only  few strands are left
• Water lily has sent out another pad, noticeably larger than the others
• Fry are enjoying the foxtail and lettuce to hide in
• The larger fish go after the fry, but they are able to escape into the tangle of floating roots of the lettuce and foxtail
• Added Medium smooth rocks to the bottom of the tank to create some hiding place for the fish, and to hold down future plants
• Week 7
• Both tanks have spawned new fry, about 6-8 each
• Existing fry have reached about half inch length
• One tank has gone almost perfectly clear, with all algae completely receding
• We notice that this tank gets almost no sun due to the sun position at this time of year
• The other tank continues to maintain 2-inch visibility with small dead algae clumps consistently floating to the surface
• I skim off the excess and put it in the surrounding plants, they seem to be enjoying it
• Although tank 2 is under a tree, it still gets more sun than tank 1, and i have attributed the algae growth to this greater sun exposure
• The floating lettuce in both tanks seems to have gotten a shade yellower, indicating that the ammonia and nitrate levels in the top layers at least are quite low
• My foxtail that i have planted at the base by being loosely held in some rocks is my gauge for nitrates at lower levels
• So far, the foxtail also shows signs of yellowing, indicating overall low levels of ammonia and nitrates
• There is a noticeable difference in the foxtail that is growing directly underneath the lettuce. It is greener and more vibrant, suggesting it does not like direct sunlight.
• The fry live constantly in the foxtail and the unopened lily leaves
• Without this plant, i am certain none would have survived as the large fish consistently chase them if they see them
• The fry are quite capable of eluding the larger fish as long as they have their special hiding places to retreat to
• The lily has put out many new leaves, almost triple the size of the original leaves, and seems to be enjoying the deep, calm water
• Tank 2 Papyrus is growing quite aggressively, sending roots along the side of the tank straight down
• Largest sprout is almost half foot tall
• Tank 1 papyrus has shown no signs of rooting
• Ficus roots have attached themselves to the side of the tank
• Fish seem to enjoy the rocks and will swim lazily between them
• A thin layer of algae seems to be slowly growing on the sides.
• A thin layer of algae has firmly rooted itself on all the smooth rocks, suggesting that the water tanks have anti-algal coatings, as the algae grew on the rocks almost immediately