It occurred to me that there are probably a lot of people who would like to put in frog ponds but are worried about mosquitoes and diseases, which is certainly something to think about.

The life cycle of mosquitoes can vary depending on temperature.  I have heard that if you disturb the water by stirring it every few days that the larvae will die, but it looks like that may not be true.  I am going to keep an eye on my mini frog pond and if the frogs are not sufficient to keep the water clear of wigglers then I will get one or two minnows from the feed store and let them keep the bugs and algae down.

I do know that after years of living next to a large pond, I have been bitten more at other people’s properties where there is no standing water than I have been next to the pond, which had gazillions of frogs, waterfowl, some fish, and bats.  As long as you keep an eye on things and you are educated about life cycles and predators of pests than you can figure out how to proceed.

Oh, and I have not yet had a chance to look for frogs to “plant” near my bucket pond, but it may not be necessary – yesterday evening I saw a frog hopping away from the pond into a rosemary bush, so it seems they have already found it!  I did some research over the weekend and I think the frog I see most often around here is the California Treefrog.  It was kind of fun to find out that frogs are such an important indicator species of the health of ecosystems and realize how many there are in this area!  In spring the large pond tends to be full of these Yosemite Toads, as near as I can tell.  I’m not sure how many there usually are in the pond at breeding season – I remember springs where it seemed like there were hundreds, but it sort of depends.

If anyone has or puts in a frog pond, send me a picture and I will feature it!

Y Girl