As home tour season winds down in Atlanta, koi ponds are getting their turn in the spotlight. The Atlanta Koi Club’s biennial pond tour June 27 will feature 11 homeowners in Alpharetta, Milton, Roswell, Sandy Springs and Marietta.
The “Pond Life” tour has grown in size over the years, as more homeowners have volunteered to showcase their koi ponds, said Chairwoman Melanie Onushko. The event offers a way to view koi, ducks and other animals, to get ideas for garden and pond design, and to see examples of essential elements, such as filtration systems.
“It’s helpful to go on the tour and see the different systems and how it’s set up,” she said.
One property on this year’s tour features a pond that is enclosed in a greenhouse and is filled with imported Japanese koi. Another has ponds and streams that connect the front yard to the backyard.
Plus, some homeowners on tour, including Onushko, have multiple ponds in their yard. Her biggest and newest pond is a 7,000-gallon pond that holds 40 koi. That one joins a quarantine pond with babies, and a frog and turtle pond on her Alpharetta property.
“It’s very relaxing,” she said. “We spend a lot of time out there just sitting and talking. It’s kind of like being in a family room with a live TV on.”
Onushko, whose children now are in their 20s, built her first pond with her daughter. Over the years, Onushko has learned what it takes to maintain koi and the ponds. She offers advice about pond setup and maintenance to homeowners seeking to add a koi pond to their property.
“Make sure you put in a good filtration system to start because it makes everything a lot easier,” she said. “It makes the upkeep easier. Your fish stay healthier. When the water is clean, you get to enjoy the pond the way it’s meant to be enjoyed.”
Koi pond owners also should be prepared to ward off predators, which can include snakes, birds and turtles. Onushko uses fishing line around her ponds, to keep out some animals, such as blue herons that typically visit in the spring and fall.
“That way, it doesn’t obstruct the view too much,” she said.
If You Go
What: Atlanta Koi Club Pond Tour, a self-guided tour of 11 metro Atlanta properties
When: 9:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. June 27
Cost: $15 (Tickets at Splendor Koi & Pond, Coastal Pond Supply, Atlanta Koi & Pond, Randy's Perennials & Water Gardens, Blossom & Bloom Greenhouse and Nursery, and The Koi Store)
Info: atlantakoiclub.org
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