If you own a pond in a northerly climate like Medina, MN, setting it up for winter is a good idea. Some prep work goes a long way toward simple maintenance.

First, does your pond needs a cover during the winter? The simple answer is “No”, you do not need a cover on your pond. To care for your pond in winter:

1. Keep some water moving
2. Add a floating heater as a bonus
3. Check the water level, weekly at a minimum.

Let’s take a field trip through Jeff’s mind, our pond expert. He relies heavily on past experience here in the frozen tundra of MSP, Minnesota where temperatures are often below 0F. From elaborate winter-only greenhouses set up over ponds to beach balls holding up tarps, we have personally seen many types of pond covers.

Many, many ponds are simply insulated by nature; covered by ice and snow. Just like igloos, a layer of ice and snow make great insulation and do not need any support beams or cables to hold them up. Snow is not bad for a pond. As the snow melts or mixes into the pond, it may bring extra nutrients but it is not bad for ponds.

Is one method best? Not really, though some methods of winter pond care take a lot more time and resources.

We’ve seen fish make it through all those scenarios! (We’ve heard that fish have been eaten in all those scenarios, also!)

About the fish….

Jeff has never seen fish in a pond die in winter from cold, only from loss of oxygen or predators. He has personally kept fish in a backyard pond through the winter. The pond was only 2 ft deep but he did three things to keep the fish alive.

1. Put a return de-icer on the pump to keep water moving. This added lots of oxygen for the fish.
2. Kept a hole in the ice all winter. The moving water made a hole except when temperatures were -20F! On the coldest days, he did have to chop a hole in the ice. The ice hole allowed for gas exchange in the water, a necessary step to overwintering fish in a pond.
3. Did not feed the fish. The fish were in torpor, or fish-hibernation.

This pond only had ice and snow as a pond cover.

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Have questions about caring for a pond or waterfall in the winter? Please send us a note. We love helping others enjoy their ponds as much as we do!