Hi Friend,

Here is today's Pond Q&A, with a question about what to do if you have a Blue Heron as an univited dinner guest.

But first - Here's an important reminder about tomorrow's Q&A tele-seminar!

*****************************************************************
Here's your last chance to ask YOUR single biggest question about your pond... to be answered live on tomorrow's Q&A tele-seminar. Tap into my extensive 10 year experience with ponds and water gardens, and ask your question here:
->->-> http://www.macarthurwatergardens.com/askbrettfogle/
*****************************************************************

For those of you who just want to listen in, here are the call details:
->-> Date: Saturday, October 30th
->-> Time: 2 PM EST
->-> Phone: 1-580-474-3600
->-> Pin: 222037#
Please join us tomorrow for a one-of-a-kind live pond Q&A, where I'll be answering your questions by phone...

We already have over 100 questions, so I'll try to answer the most common questions first, then get into some of the more unique ones.

But one thing's for sure...

You'll definately learn something about ponds that you probably didn't know before, so don't miss it!

Now on to our question:

===

Question>

I recently had a visitor to my pond. Unfortunately he came for dinner.

Since he wiped us out of fish. What can we do for next year to prevent the heron from feeding out of our pond?

Bernadette Gibson

==

Answer>

Hi Bernadette,

Sorry to hear about your univited 'guest' -- it's always hard losing fish, especially to predators!

There are a wide variety of different predator controls, for keeping unwanted animals away from your pond. Some are effective, and some are not as effective.

The most simple, is to place pond netting over the pond - and for many, this is the only solution that works. Herons can be very smart, and if they really want your fish, will be bold at times - so netting the pond (although unattractive) may be a good idea.

Personally, I couldn't stand to have my pond netted, so I'm using a heron decoy. However, they're not always effective. We've been selling them for years, with pretty good success..

But I'll never forget one time when a guy came in a week after buying one, and said that it worked great for a week - but then he came out and saw the heron trying to MATE with the decoy!

So, nothing is 100%. The key with a heron decoy also, is to make sure you move it around every week or so, so the heron doesn't 'catch on.'

There are also mini-electronic fences that you can buy, which work best for racoons or other small animals who are eating out of the pond - but probably won't work well for herons.

Some people also string fishing line across the pond, to try and trip up the heron, which can be effective - but the best preventative strategy is just to have a deep pond, with steep sides, so the heron can't wade it for a snack.

Lastly, there's also a relatively new solution called a 'Scarecrow' which is essentially a motion activated sprinkler head, shaped like a giant bird head. Once anything moves in the field of view, it gets a nice long spray of water. I've also heard these work very well...

I have one, but have never hooked it up. I can just see myself walking out to the pond, half-awake on a Saturday morning, and getting a nice ice-cold shower by The Scarecrow!

So, I'm saving that for a last resort...

Hope this helps.

Brett

==