So, you’ve found the perfect new koi—maybe a fiery Showa with ink-black markings, or a brilliant Kohaku glowing red and white like a swimming flag. You’re excited to introduce your new prize to the pond, imagining it gliding gracefully among your other living jewels. But hold up—before you let that newcomer dive in, there’s one essential rule every koi keeper must follow: quarantine first, celebrate later.

So, you’ve fallen in love with koi—those shimmering, living jewels that glide through your pond like floating brushstrokes. You’ve seen koi for $25 at the local garden center, and others online for $2,500 (each!). What’s the deal? Are the expensive ones dipped in gold? Are the cheap ones rejects from koi school? Welcome to the fascinating—and sometimes mysterious—world of koi grading and pricing.

So, you’ve caught the koi fever. You’ve studied the varieties—Kohaku, Showa, Sanke, Ogon—and you’re ready to bring home a few living jewels for your pond. But before you fall in love with the first fish that flashes its fins your way, you need to know what to look for. Not all koi are created equal—and choosing wisely can mean the difference between a pond full of beauty and one full of heartbreak (and vet bills).

You’ve done your homework. You know your Kohaku from your Showa, your Asagi from your Ogon. You’ve prepped your pond, balanced your water, and you’re ready to bring home your living jewels. But now comes the million-dollar question (or, depending on your koi addiction, maybe literally): where do you actually buy koi?

There’s something magical about koi fish—the way their colors glide through the water like moving paintings, each pattern telling a silent story. To the untrained eye, koi may just look “red and white” or “orange and black.” But to koi keepers, each fish speaks a language of artistry and tradition—a living brushstroke that dates back centuries to Japan’s rice fields and royal gardens.

They’re colorful, graceful, and hypnotically peaceful—koi fish are living works of art that can turn any backyard pond into a masterpiece. But before you run out and fill your cart with shiny swimming jewels, take a breath. Koi are not impulse buys—they’re long-lived, high-maintenance roommates that demand more care than your average goldfish. (And they’ll outlive your cat.)

You’ve built your dream koi pond. The liner is smooth, the waterfall is babbling, and the water is sparkling like a gem in the sun. You can already picture those elegant koi gliding through the water like living jewels. But before you sprint to the nearest koi dealer—stop! That shimmering water may look ready, but to a koi, it could be a chemical cocktail of doom.

One of the biggest secrets to keeping a thriving koi pond isn’t fancy equipment or rare fish—it’s mastering water quality year-round. Just when you think your pond is stable, the seasons change and—boom!—your once-pristine water starts acting like a moody teenager. From summer algae parties to winter oxygen dips, every season throws your pond a new curveball.

They sway gently, bloom beautifully, and look downright poetic beside your koi—but pond plants aren’t just eye candy. They’re the secret workhorses of a balanced ecosystem. From filtering out waste to keeping your pond cool and clear, aquatic plants are nature’s built-in cleaning crew and air conditioner rolled into one leafy package.

Let’s dive into why plants deserve a starring role in your koi pond, which ones to choose, and how to keep them thriving (without letting them turn your pond into a jungle).

So you step out to admire your pond—ready to watch your koi shimmer like living jewels—only to discover they’ve vanished. The water looks like blended spinach soup, and your waterfall has turned into a slimy green curtain. Congratulations! You’ve just met the two troublemakers of the koi world: green water and string algae.