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July/August 2009
888-297-6637|www.h2odesignsinc.com |
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Greetings! |
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Pond Reflections
 One of my most favorite aspects of owning and building ponds are reflections. Before you go off an think "Man Jeff has really lost it this time" please allow me a moment to explain myself.
Still water provides Mother Nature a Perfect canvas for some incredible views. For you pond owners I challenge you go out to your pond late this afternoon with a cool glass of ice tea, sit by your pond, and watch. Dragonflies dance by. Water striders and fish make small ripples on the pond's surface. The atmosphere is calm and conducive to quiet relaxation.
 To create dramatic reflections you should Choose Foliage That will reflect dramatically in the pond. When placing plants beside your pond, consider how their leaves will reflect in the water. For example cattails, trees with plump seeds at the end provide dramatic reflective properties.
When I am designing a pond I often consider how the sunlight will fall on the pond in different seasons through the leaves of the larger trees and bushes. I often make plans to place plants in spots where they will reflect into the water in the late afternoon/evening.
Plant colors do not reflect perfectly. However, choosing a variety of colorful trees and shrubs will help make pond reflections beautiful and generally enhance the pond environment.
Finally I would say my favorite reflection happens midday on a clear blue sky day. There is absolutely nothing more spectacular than watching clouds glide gracefully across your pond surface.
The next time you need to be relieved from the stress of your day just sit out by the pond and get lost in it's Reflections....
Sincerely
Jeff Duggins |
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| Upcoming Events |
Central Kentucky Pond And Water Feature Tour
Saturday August 15th -Sunday August 16th
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| Photographs From the Field |
Princess Enjoying the Pond
Mother-Daughter-(Dog) Time 
Ragged Robin In Bloom
New Pond/Waterfall
(Winchster KY)
Pondless Waterfall (Carlisle KY)
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SPECIAL EVENT!!! |
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It is time again for Our 2nd Annual Central Kentucky Pond and Water Feature Tour. This years tour will be even more spectacular than last years featuring 20 of Central Kentucky's finest Pond's and Water Features and more importantly the areas most unique and intriging pond owners. This years tour will feature spectacular Ponds, 100 foot long Streams and Waterfalls and 2 of the areas only Rainwater Harvesting Systems. Set the dates on your calendars now and don't miss this unique and fun event.
NEW THIS YEAR...SILENT AUCTION..
Over $3000.00 of Items Up for Auction
We have asked our sponsors to donate items to help boost our donation to our selected charities. Between our donations and the donations from our sponsors we have over 20 Items available for auction including a complete bubbling urn and installation kit worth over $600.00.
All Proceeds for the pond tour will benefit Camp Horsin' Around. A 191-acre property located in Kentucky's Boyle and Mercer Counties that will provide permanent facilities necessary for ill children including a fully equipped clinic area, dining hall, cabins, and activities areas including a pool and horse stables. The mission of Camp Horsin' Around is to provide a camp facility specifically designed and equipped to enrich the lives of children with serious, chronic illnesses and physical difficulties.
Website: www.camphorsinaround.org
Email: camphorsinaround@windstream.net
Phone: 859-381-9998
Sincerely
Jeff Duggins |
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1st Annual "Pictures in Ponds" Photo Contest!!! |
Click Here for More Information
We want to see your ponds (and so does everyone else). This contest is "VERY SIMPLE". Just submit your photos to photocontest@h2odesignsinc.com, tell us what category you are entering for and you could win $100 in KOIns. If you don't know what a KOIn is then click here. There are no stipulations, whether we installed your pond, you installed your own pond or had another area professional install your pond, you qualify for entry into our contest. Additionally you the contest is not limited to just Ponds, Pondless Waterfalls, Fountains, etc. The only requirement is Water. There will be a dedicated section of our website so everyone can view submitted photos.
Deadline for Entries is Monday September 7th. Winners will be selected by a selected group of Employees and Customers.
Contest Categories
- People & Ponds
- Pond Life
- Most Natural Photograph
- Most Unique Photograph
- Best Overall Photograph
Sincerely
Jeff Duggins |
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Garden Center News |
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Why We Quarantine Our Fish?
 Pond owners love their fish. Just like our other pets we hate to see our fish get sick or hurt. In order to keep your finned friends healthy we quarantine our fish for a period of 2 weeks before selling to the public. This allows us to monitor and treat the fish for the many KOI heath issues that can arise in retailing fish.
The two most common health issues are parasites and bacterial infections that may be caused from the stress of being transported from the KOI Farm to the store. We keep the salt level up in our tanks to fight parasites and we treat the tanks for 7 days for parasites and possible bacterial infections.
There are several types of parasitic threats such as fish lice and anchor worms that can be seen by the naked eye or flukes and costia that are microscopic. One sign that KOI may have a parasitic problem is when the fish start a "flashing" behavior - which is swimming fast and rubbing along the sides of their ponds or tanks trying to rub off the parasites from their bodies.
Bacterial Infections are not caused by the bacteria, the fish's immune system is weakened by one of the following: parasites, stress, or extreme changes in the water temperature causing the bacteria to attack the weakened fish. Bacterial infections result in ulcers or sores on the fish.
Both parasitic and bacterial health issues can be treated and the fish restored to a healthy state. Safe treatments for entire ponds or tanks include adding salt , a parasite control medication,medicated food and mela fix and pima fix medications. No matter what you treat your fish with you should be sure you know how much water you are treating so that you do not overdose and hurt your fish. Safe treatments for individual fish would be an ointment to apply to wounds, salt baths, or injections. I do not recommend that home owners inject their fish unless they have had some training on doing so. The bottom line is the health of your fish and our fish is very important to us and we will do our part to make sure they stay healthy.
PLANTS..
The new plant of the month is the Blue Moneywart. This is a new addition to our plant tables this year. It does not get very tall and spreads like a ground cover. This plant has beautiful little blue purple flowers that bloom from spring to summer.
Sincerely
Rachel Duggins |
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Hanah's Charity "KOIner" |
"Silent Auction"
The 2nd annual Pond Tour is coming up on August 15th and 16th and I am super excited because we will be raising money to support Camp Horsin Around. Pond tour ticket holders will have the opportunity to participate in a silent auction that I will be hosting. The auction proceeds will be divided in order to benefit two charities. The two charities will be Camp Horsin Around and the Garrard County Animal Shelter. I added the animal shelter because it has been brought to my attention that the they are in need of basic supplies such as food for the animals. View a list of the items up for auction by clicking here. Bids can be placed online or in our store. You must have a valid pond tour ticket to make a bid on the items. All bids must be submitted by Friday August 14th at midnight.
Hanah Duggins |
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Austin's Pond Life Lesson |
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Is a dragonfly a fly?
Answer: "No, because it does not look a fly."
Austin is correct. A dragonfly is not a fly. Flies are insects with two wings. Dragonflies have four wings. However, both flies and dragonglies are insects, meaning they have six legs and three body parts that define them as an insect: a head, a thorax, and an abdomen.
Austin Duggins | |
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