What is Involved in Running a Koi Show

Transcription

1 THE NEWSLETTER OF THE ST. LOUIS WATER GARDENING SOCIETY October 2016 What is Involved in Running a Koi Show Hello, My name is John Hall. I have been ponding and keeping Koi for about 12 years and belong to multiple koi and pond clubs. My home club is the Midwest Pond & Koi Society located in the Chicago area. I am a member of the Board of Directors and the chairperson for our annual koi show held the last weekend in June. The 2017 show will be our club s 25th show. My wife, Pat & I started out with a 3,000 gallon garden-style pond with a lot of plants, water lilies, and lotus. As most people do, we purchased a few koi. That is when the trouble started! We were seriously bitten by the koi bug. After about 3 years we took out all the rock and liner and started digging. We kept the same foot print but went straight down 6 feet to create an environment more suited for koi. Our pond is now about 11,000 gallons with two separate pumps and filter rooms. I started showing koi about 5 years ago. My wife and I have had much fun and met many great people by sharing our love of the hobby with others in the Midwest. We recently started traveling to other parts of the country just to attend koi shows. This past spring, we attended the NorCal ZNA koi show in SanJose, California along with three other MPKS members and Rick and Pam Jokerst. Don t Miss This! What: What is Involved in Running A Koi Show Where: Missouri Botanical Garden, Ridgway Center Beaumont Room When: Tuesday, October 25th, at 7 p.m. Who: John Hall from MPKS in Chicago Pond-O-Rama Start thinking about putting your pond on tour for the 2017 tour. We already have a couple of people who have asked if they could be put on the list for next year s tour. It is never too early to do this. Planning is everything. If you commit now you know you have a deadline for your pond and yard next year and you can plan during the winter months exactly how you want to show off your oasis of a yard to the general public. 1

2 Annual Potluck & Elections in November. The St. Louis Water Gardening Society will hold its elections at the last meeting of this year, November 22, The offices of President and Secretary are to be filled for two year term beginning in January Nominations will be accepted from the floor at the meeting. However, our rules require that only members who have been consulted in advance about their willingness to serve may be nominated. Any member interested in serving in either position, may also volunteer. If you are interested in serving in any of these positions, you may ask someone to place your name in the nomination pool. If you know someone who might be interested, consult the member first, then place their name in the pool at the October meeting or the November potluck. At the annual potluck meeting in addition to the elections, we will be approving the budget for If anyone already knows what they would like to bring for the potluck please make sure you let Cindy Williams know at the October meeting or her if you can not make the meeting As always the club will supply the meat for the potluck. This year we will be having something different a silent auction on a small pond set-up from Tom and Judy Evans. It includes a 100 gallon preformed pond, triangular shape with rounded corners 4 x 5 X 18 with combination pump / bio filter and a mesh cover for fall / winter. There will also be two restaurant gift cards for attendance drawings, and short Power Point presentations on the bus trip and the Jokerst trip to Japan. TIKI TOUR--Amazing Ponds, Amazing Lighting and an Amazing Lily! The Tiki Tour route this year followed Highway 141 from west St. Louis County down to Fenton. We had over 50 members in attendance that viewed the five outstanding water features and the beautiful gardens and innovative lighting surrounding them. A hearty appetizer buffet and drinks were enjoyed at the second stop, finishing with desserts and coffee at the final destination. We also were witness to the lovely Victoria Lily blooming just as the group was arriving at the last stop. With this progressive-style tour, there was plenty of time to socialize and ask our ponding questions of the homeowners and those "in the know". We thank the pond owners, Caleb Bauer, Rick & Pam Jokerst, Don & Connie Moellenhoff, Kurt & Deb Bokamper and Ken & Maria Bowers, for opening their yards to the club and putting in time and effort to make this evening special for all of us. Many thanks to the members that brought snacks and treats to share with the group. Enjoy the photos of this magical night! by Pam Jokerst 2 Water Word, october 2016

3 Presidential Ponderings Greetings, Folks! Well, the year is almost over. Cold weather is just around the corner. Soon the leaves will be falling and morning coffee next to the pond will be off the schedule! Start getting ready! Last month we had Jeff Erickson from Elite Enterprises who talked about outdoor sound systems and provided two rock speakers as door prizes. We awarded the annual Ugly Fish award to Jesse and Carolyn Sanders for their fish, Miss Dottie, we had a terrific Tiki Tour. I want to thank all who worked on maintaining the Jewel Box this year and a special thanks to those who came out to help with the close-down. We ve got two more meetings to go. This month got John Hall from the Midwest Pond and Koi Society is coming to describe what it s like to run a koi show. Next month, we have elections for president and secretary. So far we have no nominations other than the incumbents for either office. If you are interested in running, please contact a board member. In addition, we are always looking for folks who would like to contribute their talents to group activities. We are also looking for input on programs, speakers and activities that you would like to see. What do you want to see more of? Do you want to continue the plant auction? Would you like to see an annual bus trip? (Currently we only have plans for every other year.) What subjects would you like to have programs on? Do you have suggestions for speakers? In November we also have the budget to approve and Pam Jokerst has promised to have pictures from the trip to Klobec koi operation to show. Last month, we approved an amendment to the bylaws that establishes a strategy for use of any budget surpluses. We now have guidelines on how much of reserve to maintain. It appears this year that we will have about $800 available to contribute to causes outside of the society. So far we have a request from Tower Grove Park for assistance in upgrading some of their water lily processing equipment. If you have a water gardening related project or educational cause you d like to see funded, please contact a board member with the information for consideration. Thought I d comment on naming fish. Some koi owners do, others don t. The koi that Sherry and I own have been named. Some advice on naming fish. First we ve found that using a name that describes a physical feature can be risky. While Tubby remained tubby for her entire life, a sudden weight loss might have made that name ironic. On the other hand, we have a kikusui who had red lips when purchased, so we gave her the name Hot Lips. Well within two months her lips disappeared! Another fish we named Babe after the pig in the movie of the same name because of her white color. After being platinum white for 6 years she suddenly turned yellow! Modot originally named for the black dot in the middle of his forehead would be better called Nodot now. Stash was named for his previous mustache! Riskier, still is giving your prospective fish a genderspecific name. If your fish are of spawning age watching their behavior may give you cues. Generally, the males do the chasing and the females, the running. We were pretty confident when we named Oliver though we were readily prepared to change that to Olive if the need arose. We are still waiting for a verdict on Romeo! You are generally safe to pick gender-neutral or ambiguous names. Snitches, named for Sherry s grandson busting her on her secret fish purchase was low risk. Shimi (Japanese for Spot ), a Sanke, seemed sufficiently non-committal but assumed his breed would remain stable. Zippy, named for his erratic behavior seemed a reasonable choice though he has started slowing down! Dave Stahre Water Word, october

4 St. Louis Water Gardening Society Calendar of Events Membership meetings in 2016 will be held on the dates and at the locations listed below between 7 and 9 p.m. Meetings will be held at the Missouri Botanical Garden Ridgway Center, Beaumont Room, unless otherwise noted. They are the last Tuesday of the month unless otherwise noted. October 25 What is involved in running a Koi Show, John Hall, MPKS November 22 Annual Potluck & Elections Pot luck dinner and election of officers. Nominations will be accepted for the positions of president and secretary to serve two-year terms beginning in January 2017.This is the week of Thanksgiving, the fourth Tuesday Happy Holidays! Remember, our 2017 meeting dates and places have not yet been set, but we WILL be back in January. Keep an eye out for the January issue of Water Word coming your way with details. Looking for more information about pond building, plants or fish care? Visit our website, Check out our Articles of Interest section and Links We Like for help. 4

5 Ugly Fish Contest Winner This Year.. After running our Ugly fish contest for the second year we have a winner. Won by popular vote of members in attendance at our September meeting. The winner was chosen from submitted photos. Miss Dottie on the left was this year s winner Last years winner the Williams Family fish Azul. Out on a Limb and need some help? Jesse and Carolyn Sanders Find resources at Water Word, October

6 Need fish, fish food, pond equipment/ supplies, landscape and/or pond designs or plants? All that and more is available from our advertisers. Drop by or call them when you need help. Two Ways to Get Water Word Your issue of Water Word will arrive in your mail box each month, prior to the monthly meeting, unless you prefer to have it delivered via . To sign up for delivery only, contact membership chairman Gail Abernathy at Water Word is published by the St. Louis Water Gardening Society 10 times annually, and is distributed to all members. The newsletter contains information about water gardening and fish-keeping, as well as information about SLWGS meetings and activities. Contributions of articles and photos are welcome and should be sent to the Water Word editor listed below. Documents should be in common text formats, and photos should be in high resolution (300 dpi or higher) jpeg format. The deadline for submissions is the first of each month. SLWGS membership dues are $20 annually per household. Information about the Society, including how to join, can be found at our website, or from any of the officers and board members listed: 2016 SLWGS Officers and Board Members President Dave Stahre (618) Vice President Steve Metzler (314) Treasurer Steve Harris (314) Recording Secretary Sherry Nelms (618) Publicity Chairman Ginny Mueller (314) Special Events Chairman Pam Jokerst (314) Society Shirt Sales Chairman Ruth Mosley (314) Librarian Katie Williams (314) Membership/ Chairman Gail Abernathy (314) Jewel Box Chairman Kay Miskell (618) Water Word Editor Gail Abernathy (314) Website Chairman Mary Nies (636) AKCA/ Koi USA Representative Rick Jokerst (314) Pond-O-Rama Chairman To be announced Parliamentarian Jeanne Lehr (314) Historian Joe Summers (636) Hospitality Chairman Cindy Williams (636) Past President Joe Summers (636) Members-at-Large 6 Carolyn Haus (314) carolynhaus@sbcglobal.net John Nies (636) jtnies@gmail.com Alice Gibson (618) alice1628@att.net

7 TIKI TOUR--Amazing Ponds, Amazing Lighting and an Amazing Lily! First stop Caleb Bauer s water feature (Photos by Dave Schiele) Bauer s Koi below The Bowers beautiful lighted landscape and pond and lilies (Photos by Dave Schiele) Fairy Garden At Bowers Midnight at the Jokerst Oasis Library and Learning Center library has bought a digital photo frame. So if you have a favorite photo of your fish or pond bring it in The Library and Learning center would like to remind anybody that may have interesting photos or on a jump drive and it can be added to the photo frame. You can also them to Katie at articles about Koi, pond care or pond construction to please bring them to the next meeting. Photos can beezey696@hotmail.com and she can upload them be reclaimed at the end of the meeting or donated to that way. the library. As mentioned at the last year, the 7

8 KOI NEWS--FALL HARVEST OF MUD PONDS The koi shows are done for the year, so now comes the harvesting of the koi that were placed in mud ponds for the summer to continue growing. Pam and I were in Minnesota at Koi Acres to help pull koi from six 500,000-gallon mud bottom ponds over the course of three days in early October. There will be about fifteen large koi, sized around 27 inches in each pond, with one or two ponds housing a larger number of smaller koi of fifteen to twenty-five inches. The stocking ratio is kept low for maximum growth potential while maintaining a high quality, high volume feeding schedule. The koi diet is also enriched by the natural food and insects in the ponds. The excitement of seeing your once smaller koi emerge from the mud many inches larger is exhilarating. We had two fish harvested the first day from one of two ponds: traditional Showa from the breeder Ueno and a newer-style, Kindai Showa from the breeder Isa. Showa are black-based fish with white and red patterning, of which all three colors must appear on the head and black at the base of the pectoral fins, called motoguro. It can take from three to six years for the full pattern to develop. The following pictures help tell the story. 380 S 3yr with caption "Traditional Showagrew 6 centimeters" Happy Pondering, Rick Jokerst AKCA/Koi USA Rep rickjokerst@gmail.com Cell/ S 4yr with caption "Kindai Showa-grew 4 centimeters" The St. Louis Water Gardening Society is a member of the Associated Koi Clubs of America (AKCA). Visit the association s website at 8 JAEGER Greenhouses 2369 Creve Coeur Mill Road Maryland Heights, MO Vigorous Annuals and Hanging Baskets Heirloom and Hybrid Vegetables Aquatics Premium Potting & Soil Amendments

9 FALL ONCE AGAIN. It's hard to believe, but the Jewel Box ponds and the plantings are put away for another winter. Now we must prepare our own ponds for the coming cold weather season. Hardy plants should be cut down below the water's surface and foliage removed. Tropicals need to be removed from the water and any dead material thrown away. This is a good time for a pond cleanout, if you haven't already done so. In writing this article at the first of October, I am in full swing preparing my pond with leaf netting and caging my koi to protect them from predators. Caging works wonders and I have not lost a koi after doing this for seven years. The cages are built from PVC piping with a rigid, heavy plastic netting ziptied to the pipes. It is suspended across the pond, resting six inches out of the water. I add the fish around the third week in October, depending on the weather. Please see the archived Water Word article with pictures from October Happy Pondering, Rick Jokerst AKCA/Koi USA Rep rickjokerst@gmail.com Cell/ TEXT THE REP. It was asked, what made Kurt and Deb Bokamper's Shiro Utsuri a winner at a recent Koi Show? First, Shiro Utsuri are a black-based koi with white, which develops a wrapping pattern. Judging usually starts with conformation of a fish to be most important, then quality, color and pattern last. But in a smaller koi, the conformation is not weighted as heavily, as the body is still developing. So, the skin quality and pattern are looked at a little more closely, as well as the color or filling in of the pattern on a shiro utsuri. This little Shiro ranked high in all these categories, as well as having proportionate body lines. Happy Pondering, Rick Jokerst AKCA/Koi USA Rep rickjokerst@gmail.com Cell/

10 SLWGS Water Word Killdare Court St. Ann, MO Inside this edition: Photo of the Month How to run a Koi & Gold fish.page 1 Pond-O-Rama Page1 Also Inside: Annual Potluck & Elections in November...Page2 Tiki Tour......Page 2 Presidential Ponderings....Page 3 SLWGS Calendar of Events..Page 4 Ugly Fish Contest Winner This Year......Page SLWGS Officers and Board Members Page 6 Tiki Tour Pictures...Page 7 Koi News.....Page 8 Fall Once Again.... Page 9 Text the Rep......Page 9 Photo of the Month... Page 10 Here is an impressive group of Shiro Utsuri. Shiro Utsuri are black and white koi. The black appears as bands around the body. Black on some portion of the head and motoguro on pectoral fins is desirable. Photo courtesy of Matt Corino, Sugar Loaf Koi, Aug. 13, 2009 Pond Trade Magazine 10