Monday, May 14, 2007

3 May: Where's the Rain?

It was cloudy and gloomy this morning, but did it rain? No, of course not! It has now been dry for more than a month. This is not normal spring weather for Stuttgart.

I had a nice walk with Evelyne this morning. Eiko is off with Evelyne's husband Gerd derr hunting for the week (she reported that Gerd got a buck yesterday, on opening day, so he is very happy) so we’ve just been walking with Cody. Today was an English day and we talked about Evelyne’s pond. She is having trouble with algae and two of her fish have died, so she is thinking of putting in a fountain or a pump (but her husband doesn’t want to be bothered with paying for and maintaining a pump). I said a fountain might help, but that the problem is probably lack of oxygen. I think this very warm spring has sped up the algae growth, and the plants haven’t leafed out enough around her pond to provide any shade, so the algae is really going crazy. When it rots, the bacteria use up the oxygen, which would explain why the fish are struggling. I have a feeling Evelyne will figure out a way to put in a fountain at the very least, as it sounds like the pond is her domain.

No comments: