The newsletter for the Central California Koi Society http://www.cencalkoi.com P U B L I S H E D M O N T H L Y KHA Corner: Spring Cleaning! M A R C H 2 0 1 3 Rosimeri Tran, KHA Soon our koi friends will be swimming to the tops of our pond in search of food; we need to ensure that their water haven is safe from pesky pests, like parasites that also will be in search of food and hosts to attach to. I shall discuss a plan of action for you to help prevent any problems that the warming temperatures of spring can bring. Firstly, you should check your pond for any debris that has fallen inside the pond, such as twigs, leaves or dead plants. Debris, such as decaying leaves and sludge, house bad bacteria such as aeromonas, which have the potential to cause ulcers and other harm to your koi. Some pond experts recommend removing your koi from the pond into a temporary housing and cleaning out and changing the water. After removing all plant debris give the pond a good hosing down but be careful not to remove the green algae as they house the good bacteria that your koi need to keep the water parameters in balance. Now removing the koi may not be feasible for all of us as catching the koi is a back breaking deed. So just removing the debris and then checking your pond equipment and components for any damage or necessary adjustments that may be needed, such as: UV lights may need new bulbs, PVC pipes might be leaking, and pumps that may have been shut off during the winter may need to be checked that they are working, also filters need to be cleaned and primed for the spring. It is a good idea to do a water test prior to any cleaning, this will be your base test, then do the necessary cleanup, and after changing out some of the Continued on page 3 What s Inside Spring Cleaning 1 The Tail End 2 General Meeting 2 Minutes Board Meeting 4 minutes Meeting Map 4 Interesting Stuff 5 Board Members 6 President s Corner 6 ZNA SoCal Ad 7 (Continued on page 2)
February General Meeting February 12, 2013 Sandy Winn The Tail End By Amanda Bulls-Stephens The General meeting was held at Rosimeri and Seng Tran s home. 14 people attended. 1st meeting of 2013. Discussed need of one more board member. Anyone interested? Club dues are due and could be paid to Seng or paid at the meeting. The joint meeting with Bakersfield koi club to be held in Fresno. Field trip to San Jose on April 27 or 28th. Koi show confirmed with fig garden village. Sept 27th - Sept 29th. Lou Weaver gave a presentation on what to look for in buying quality fish. Raffle prizes were won by Bob Garrison, Amanda Stephens, Tony Palazo, Mrs Vo, and Sandy Winn 1130 N Fulton St. Fresno, CA 93728 559-237-8479 P A G E 2
Spring Cleaning (Continued from page 1) pond water, do another test for a comparison. If your test kit is outdated, please replace it with a new one as the liquid reagents tend to lose their effectiveness over time. Write the date of purchase on the test kit, that way you know when you opened it and they should be replaced yearly for effectiveness. Make sure that when you are refilling the pond water, you are also adding a water conditioner such as Amquel or sodium thiosulfate. Sodium thiosulfate removes the chlorine from the water, while Amquel Plus removes Nitrite, Nitrate, Ammonia, Chlorine and Chloramines which is good to have on hand for water quality issues. Water changes should be performed on a regular basis once feeding begins, at minimum 10% weekly. As uneaten food, decaying plant life and fish waste that falls to the bottom of your pond will create ammonia in the pond water which is toxic to the koi. Adding salt in the spring is another preventive measure to help your koi, by adding salt to the water your koi will have a reaction to it due to the fact that it s an irritant and your koi will produce a slime coat that helps protect them from any pests that may be in search of a host. Since the koi s immune system is weak from the cold winter and the slime they produce from the salt will help protect them from the parasites, since the parasites in the water will become more active and your filter will take time to kick back on and the good bacteria will need time to reproduce before your filter will become effective. So by adding the salt you are protecting your koi when they are most vulnerable. Make sure you have a digital salt meter before doing this and you MUST know your pond volume before adding any type of treatment, as if you don t add enough the treatment won t work, add too much and you may harm the koi. After adding salt, do not let it sit in the water too long as salt does not evaporate so you will need to dilute it after a few days no longer than a week, especially if this is your first time, the koi may need time to get used to it, possibly adding salt in increments over a few days, instead of all at once, ease them into it. Plants may be killed off by adding salt so make sure you remove any plants before you add the salt to the pond. Now that you have cleaned the pond and once the water parameters are in check and the salt has been diluted, you may want to begin feeding the koi. Check your pond water temperature; do not feed if it is below 50 degrees F or if the temperature has been unstable. Once the water temperature starts to climb, slowly introduce some cold water pellets such as wheat germ, it is easier on the koi s digestive system. DO NOT OVERFEED, they have not eaten during the winter and need to adjust slowly to eating. Remember if they don t eat the food it will drop to bottom of pond and create an unhealthy water environment for them. As the water temperatures rise they will become more active and will consume more food. Once the water temperature has stayed stable and is above 60 degrees F you can change to their seasonal koi food, monitor the water quality, give your filtration time to get back on track and watch your koi for any signs of parasites, such as rubbing on the sides of the pond or on the bottom of the pond. By accomplishing all of these, you and your koi will be much happier. Happy spring cleaning! Koi Whisperer Submissions The Koi Whisperer is accepting submissions for the monthly newsletter. If you have something you want to say, or if you have an article you would like published, please send it to us at: ccksnewsletter@hotmail.com. Submissions must be received by the 20th of the month in order for it to be published in the next newsletter. P A G E 3
February Board Meeting Sandy Winn February 19, 2013 Board meeting minutes by Sandy Winn The February board meeting was held Tuesday night Feb 19,2013 at Dale and Sandy winn s home. Attended by Rosimeri Tran, Seng Tran, Tony Palazo, Dale winn and Sandy Winn. Treasures report: Bank balance is $4,493.13, an increase from January due to raffle sales and koi club membership dues. Membership dues are due and can be paid to Seng at the next meeting or they can be mailed to Seng. Tony is working to get the club non-profit status. There are three different ways to be non-profit and it was Benefit to Public that is best for the club. The joint meeting will be held at Nancy and Tony s. home in June. Club will provide tri-tip with members supplying pot luck items. Raffle items will need to be purchased or donated. Suggestions for raffle gifts are needed. No sign up yet for someone to host the april meeting. Trying to arrange trip april 27 th to San Jose Next general meeting will be at Dale and Sandy Winn s home March 12 th at 7:00 pm. 1276 w. Alluvial Ave Fresno. Discussed topic at next meeting will be. Easing Into Spring: Preparing Ponds For Weather Change. Discussed making shades bigger at koi show to keep all the tanks in the shade. March General Meeting Our March general meeting will be at the home of Sandy and Dale Winn, on Tuesday, March 12 at 7:00 p.m., You can find them at 1276 W. Alluvial Ave. Fresno, CA 93711 P A G E 4
Ultra Balance Koi Foods wants your koi hobbyists stories I m sure everyone of you has a unique story to tell regarding experiences you have had since you began this crazy hobby, both good and bad. Star Milling / Ultra Balance Premium Koi Foods would like to publish your stories on their website www.koifood.com. Check out their website. Under the Library link you be able to get an idea. If you re interested please send your stories to Connie at the following address: Freihoff3@aol.com. I m sure we will all enjoy reading them! A short story and a photo (pdf) is all we need. Please feel free to email me if you have any questions :} POND MAINTENANCE If you have ever used or are using a pond maintenance or repair service, please share what you know. We have members, prospective members, and the public asking frequently for references, suggestions, or just any information about anyone in this business. Pond maintenance companies allow us to relax a bit with our ponding duties, but we have to find one first. If you have anything to contribute, please send us an e-mail at ccksnewsletter@hotmail.com or announce it at the next meeting. 1630 HERNDON AVE, CLOVIS CA 93611 (559) 298-1496 Dealers of Mazuri Koi Food Newsletter advertiser Mike Przewoznik of Sumner Avenue Water Garden offers the following to CCKS members: I would like to support your club and I appreciate the business I have received from you and your Important! club members. I would like to initiate the following program for your club members going forward: Free shipping on orders $50 or more. Club members can combine orders to reach the $75 if they wish as long as I ship to one address. Items that require truck shipping or items that are extremely heavy will be looked at on case by case situation. P A G E 5
Club Officers President Rosimeri Tran 559 454-0804 cencalkoi@gmail.com Vice President Lou Weaver 559-298-9665 gramona12@gmail.com Secretary Sandy Winn 559 438-6648 sandywinn@hotmail.com Treasurer Seng Tran 559-454-0804 cencalkoi@gmail.com Board Director Tony Palazzo 559-435-7438 tonypalazz12@comcast.net Board Director Dale Winn 559 438-6648 sandywinn@hotmail.com Board Director Vacant Newsletter Editors Amanda Bulls-Stephens Sean Stephens 559-859-4816 CCKSNewsletter@hotmail.com President s Corner Happy spring to all of you; as I write this, my mind is full with all that needs to be done to get our ponds ready for spring and to ensure our koi friends in them are safe from any invading pests. Spring time is a good time to clear out any debris in your pond and to prepare the water for the warming temperatures that are coming soon. Our koi friends are probably beginning to stir in the pond and making their way to the top in search of food. Remember that it is recommended that we not feed them unless the water temperature is above 50 degrees F. I have included in President Rosimeri Tran this newsletter a KHA article to help ease your koi into springtime and the recommended pond care prior to feeding them. If you have any questions please feel free to join us at the March 12 th club meeting, where we will discuss Easing into Spring. Lou and I will give our thoughts and suggestions on what steps you should take to get your pond ready for spring. Every month I will incorporate a topic at our club meetings to help club members in taking care of their koi friends and their pond environment. So if there is anything you would like us to talk about, feel free to drop me an email or phone call, as I am always looking for new topics to research and talk about. In April we will be taking a field trip to the ZNA Norcal Koi Show in San Jose, on Saturday April 27 th. We may be van pooling or possibly renting a van if we get enough interested parties. There will be a signup sheet at the March meeting so that we can get a head count and we will discuss the time we will be leaving Fresno. This will be a day trip, so we will need to leave in the early morning to allow us ample time to spend at the show along with visiting the various koi dealers in the surrounding area. Our club needs members to host club meetings, we have July, August, September, October, November and December open, please consider signing up at the March meeting for one of these months as this helps us plan out the upcoming meeting schedule. Also we have a vacant board of director position open so if you are interested in the position please talk to one of the Officers or myself or you can inquire at the March meeting. I hope to see everyone at the March 12 th meeting and as always if you have any questions or suggestions for our club you can send them to me at cencalkoi@gmail.com. Feature Writers Rosimeri Tran Koi Health Advisors Tom Callahan Greg Mariano Seng Tran Rosimeri Tran Artwork Amanda Bulls-Stephens (The Tail End) P A G E 6
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