The mornings are chilly and the days are getting shorter...SOON the leaves will be falling from the trees and you will have to decide what to do with your waterfeature this winter: let it run or shut it down! If you don't know about the different Life Support Options for your fish over the Winter, read our Life Support blog and our Winter Fish Safety blog! What options does Dreamscapes offer this 2017 season during the "Fall Waterfeature Shutdown" process?

This service includes:
-Drain, clean and power washing of the entire pond.
-Clean all pumps, filters and skimmers.
-Cut back plants
-Cover the pond with the pond net provided by homeowner.

Later during winter, Dreamscapes will come back to disconnect the pump & check valve, check that the aerator and/or heater are working and remove the pond net so the snow doesn't stretch or rip it with weight.

This service includes:
-Manual removal of debris/leaves from waterfeature
-Service pump
-Cut back plants,
-Add heater & aerator to pond (provided by homeowner)
-Cover waterfeature with net.

Pump can either be left running or can be pulled at the time of service.

This service includes:
-Manual removal of debris/leaves from waterfeature
-Service pump
-Cut back plants,
-Add heater & aerator to pond (provided by homeowner)
-Addition of custom made "tented net" that is most efficient at keeping the leaves off the water. This style net also allows you to enjoy your waterfeature for several additional weeks.

This service includes:
-Disconnecting pump & check valve
-Ensure aerator and/or heater are working
-Removal of pond net for the winter months

Dreamscapes offers Spring Opening, Fall Shutdown and even Routine Pond Maintenance packages seasonally! We also carry a full line of pond supplies from water treatments and fish medications to pond pumps, heaters, fountains, plants and fish! Tadpoles and snails are also available at our Aquatic Retail Center in Lebanon, Pennsylvania seasonally while supplies last from May-August.  If you think you need it, we have it!

Retail Hours:  April 5th-October 27th 2018:
                           Monday-Wednesday: By Appt
                           Thursday-Friday: 10am-5pm
                           Saturday: 9am-12pm
                     October 28th-April 2019: HOURS BY APPT


Contact Us
2155 State Route 343, Lebanon Pa | 717-272-6555 | info@dreamscapeswatergardens.com

Dreamscapes Watergardens services koi ponds and waterfalls in the city of Lebanon, Lancaster, Harrisburg, Mechanicsburg, Camp Hill, Cleona, Cornwall, Fredericksburg, Indiantown Gap, Jonestown, Kleinfeltersville, Mount Gretna, Myerstown, Newmanstown Palmyra, Quentin, Reistville, Richland, Schaefferstown of Pennsylvania, PA

So you have a beautiful pond with fish and the seasons are changing so you have questions:
            How often and what do you feed them?
            Does it matter what kind of food they eat? 
            Do you need to feed them in the wintertime? 
            Will the goldfish eat the same food as Koi?

Your fish will be FAR more enjoyable and friendly pets if you feed them because they’ll learn to trust you and they’ll start looking to you as a food source. Truthfully, it is magical throwing handfuls of fish food in the water and watching them all come to the surface to gobble it up!  And yes!  Koi will eat more than goldfish will, so adding a little extra food to their diet can be helpful—they’ll actually eat algae, too. So don’t be afraid to let your koi help minimize your maintenance by letting they gobble up some algae. If they have to pick between the food we toss in and algae, however, they will choose our food everytime. Keep in mind that when fish poop breaks down, it contributes to the ammonia levels in the water and can be toxic to fish. If you haven't already, read our Ammonia blog
for more information.

If you are feeding ANY retail-bought fish food, you NEED to read the label, as there are temperature specific foods that help tackle each season

In spring when the pond temperatures in Central Pa reaches 50ºF, it is safe to begin feeding fish. Fish now are coming out of their winter hibernation and they cannot metabolize all of the ingredients of the all season formulas.

As the water ranges between 50-56ºF in the spring, the fish will begin to feed, and they need food that is easily digested, such as foods that contain WHEAT GERM.  Dreamscapes carries a Fall/Spring “Cold Weather” fish food that helps to with digestion. This is the ONLY food that should be fed at this time.

During the warmer months, pond fish require a high-protein diet for growth and spawning. When the temperature goes above 65°, a summer staple or a high growth and energy food can be fed. Keep in mind that your fish can appear hungry even if you feed them 3x a day BUT the more you feed them, they more they poop, the slower the poop breaks down and the more fertilization algae has to grow.

Winter is a whole new ball-park for fish when it comes to food-feeding and life-support mechanisms. When the water temperature drops below 50°F, the fish’s metabolism is too slow to utilize food. You absolutely need to STOP feeding your fish, as they are entering their state of hibernation and they are not capable of proper digestion in cold water and the food can decay in their system, sending bacteria into the bloodstream and killing them.

Located in Lebanon, Pennsylvania, Dreamscapes Watergardens installs and renovates koi fish ponds and pondless waterfalls (disappearing waterfalls) all over the Central Pennsylvania area. For more information on koi ponds and waterfeature installations, please contact us directly!

Dreamscapes also carries a full line of pond supplies from water treatments and fish medications to pond pumps, heaters, fountains, plants and fish! Tadpoles and snails are also available at our Aquatic Retail Center in Lebanon, Pennsylvania seasonally while supplies last from May-August.  If you think you need it, we have it!

Retail Hours:  April 5th-October 27th 2018:
                           Monday-Wednesday: By Appt
                           Thursday-Friday: 10am-5pm
                           Saturday: 9am-12pm
                     October 28th-April 2019: HOURS BY APPT


Contact Us
2155 State Route 343, Lebanon Pa | 717-272-6555 | info@dreamscapeswatergardens.com

Dreamscapes Watergardens services koi ponds and waterfalls in the city of Lebanon, Lancaster, Harrisburg, Mechanicsburg, Camp Hill, Cleona, Cornwall, Fredericksburg, Indiantown Gap, Jonestown, Kleinfeltersville, Mount Gretna, Myerstown, Newmanstown Palmyra, Quentin, Reistville, Richland, Schaefferstown of Pennsylvania, PA

Hyacinth: one of our most favorite tropical floating plants (and usually the only tropical plants we carry at all)!!! This free floating, quick populating aquatic plant should have just about taken over your pond by now...afterall, that's what they do (did you know they're banned in the southern states?). You start the summer with 1 or 2 and end with 30 or 40...or more (like the above picture).

Around this time we start getting calls from new pond owners who are wondering what sort of care goes into floating aquatic plants over the fall and winter. It's simple: pitch them! That's right...get rid of them. Tropical floaters like hyacinth and lettuce will die at first frost (historically about mid-late September for Central PA) and will not come back for you next year. That's why they're banned as plants in the south-- the south does NOT get a frost and the frost is the only thing that kills them naturally. Floaters start to turn a brownish sort of color and go mush.

At that point, they'll begin to sink and decompose in the water, creating a sludgy mess for you in the spring if they were left in the water. Too many decomposing plants can contribute the fatal ammonia levels in a pond. Fatal ammonia levels -- what's that?? Read our blog on Ammonia to find out!

We have had a few customers try over-wintering them inside their houses by a window. But at an average of $3.50 a piece, is it really worth all the care and space they'd take up to bring them indoors? That's up to you! They would still need ample amounts of sun and warmth. So depending upon how much natural sunlight comes through your window and how warm you keep your house--- you may be okay.

Taking the time to properly care for your aquatic plants will mean happier and healthier plants next spring, and (in turn) a cleaner, healthier, pond ecosystem for your fish. Tropical plants, however, need to be pulled and disposed of, as their decomposition only creates a mess for you come the following spring. Dreamscapes carries a full line of pond supplies from water treatments and fish medications to pond pumps, heaters, fountains, plants and fish available at our Aquatic Retail Center in Lebanon, Pennsylvania seasonally.  If you think you need it, we have it!

Retail Hours:  April 5th-October 27th 2018:
                           Monday-Wednesday: By Appt
                           Thursday-Friday: 10am-5pm
                           Saturday: 9am-12pm
                     October 28th-April 2019: HOURS BY APPT


Contact Us
2155 State Route 343, Lebanon Pa | 717-272-6555 | info@dreamscapeswatergardens.com

Dreamscapes Watergardens services koi ponds and waterfalls in the city of Lebanon, Lancaster, Harrisburg, Mechanicsburg, Camp Hill, Cleona, Cornwall, Fredericksburg, Indiantown Gap, Jonestown, Kleinfeltersville, Mount Gretna, Myerstown, Newmanstown Palmyra, Quentin, Reistville, Richland, Schaefferstown of Pennsylvania, PA

The number one reason why people get a water garden, backyard pond, waterfeature (CALL IT WHAT YOU WILL) is so they can have fish, DUH. Then they research and ask around and hope they're getting advice that doesn't lead them astray. Don’t let the fears and myths of owning fish keep you from getting a few of your own finned friends for your water garden---know your facts. Take a look below at how Aquascape Inc. has cracked some commonly heard myths about fish in a water-- credit to Aquascape, Inc for all the research and information!

Want the fish but don't want the hassle of taking care of them? Dreamscapes offers Spring Opening, Fall Shutdown and even Routine Pond Maintenance packages seasonally! We also carry a full line of pond supplies from water treatments and fish medications to pond pumps, heaters, fountains, plants and fish! Tadpoles and snails are also available at our Aquatic Retail Center in Lebanon, Pennsylvania seasonally while supplies last from May-August.  If you think you need it, we have it!

Retail Hours:  April 5th-October 27th 2018:
                           Monday-Wednesday: By Appt
                           Thursday-Friday: 10am-5pm
                           Saturday: 9am-12pm
                     October 28th-April 2019: HOURS BY APPT


Contact Us
2155 State Route 343, Lebanon Pa | 717-272-6555 | info@dreamscapeswatergardens.com

Dreamscapes Watergardens services koi ponds and waterfalls in the city of Lebanon, Lancaster, Harrisburg, Mechanicsburg, Camp Hill, Cleona, Cornwall, Fredericksburg, Indiantown Gap, Jonestown, Kleinfeltersville, Mount Gretna, Myerstown, Newmanstown Palmyra, Quentin, Reistville, Richland, Schaefferstown of Pennsylvania, PA