November is on our doorstep.  Leaves have been falling, Lowes has already changed over to Christmas decorations, the 2024 koi show season has ended, and koi dealers are in Japan looking for new koi to sell.

We have three important CKC events left in 2024:

• November CKC meeting will be hosted by Todd & Stacy Bradley, Saturday, November 9, 2024 at 5:00 pm. Please check the monthly newsletter for the meeting address.
• MapleWalk Garden Private Tour, Saturday, November 23, 1:00 pm. Club will be paying admission for CKC members.
• Holiday CKC Dinner, date/time TBD, early December

This is the time of the year to winterize our ponds. In North Carolina if your koi pond is three feet or deeper, your pond will most likely not freeze. Deeper ponds help keep the water temperature more consistent which is important for koi health. It’s good practice to ensure your pond debris is cleaned up now and plan for adequate water circulation and aeration for the next few months. Make sure you have a method of checking the water temperature. When the water temperature drops below 40°-50°F, stop feeding your koi. Check your food ingredients and ensure in cooler temperatures you are feeding a wheat germ based product.

This month, Gary Chesson has shared his koi keeping experience to date in our newsletter. We would love to hear from other CKC members. If you are moved to write – we’ll publish! If you don’t want to write but willing to do an interview with me – please let me know. We’re always interested in a number of activities that koi keepers and water gardeners do like bonsai, Japanese maples, Asian gardening, painting, polka dancing…

Hope to see everyone at one or all of the upcoming activities. We’ll be sending out email reminders. If you would like to join the fun – please check out how to become a Charlotte Koi Club member here: https://charlottekoiclub.com/join/

Cheers!

Lori Vertin, CKC President

- Lori Vertin