If you are reading this article, it means that you have clicked on its title on this site, which also means that you’ve got at least a passing interest in ponds, fish, plants and the hobby in general. Many of you may have goldfish, some of you may have koi, and all of you have questions.

Questions like: “What kind of fish is that?”

“Why is my water that funny color?”

“What is that smell?”

“Why are all my fish swimming upside down?”

“Where can I rent a bulldozer?”

If you’re a little better at the hobby than that, questions about equipment upgrades, water testing, pond chemicals, fish health and access to better quality fish are more likely to be on your mind. A good-sized koi and goldfish show is the ideal place to go to find answers to all of these and more. They are gatherings of the most knowledgeable hobbyists in the area, who are there to exhibit the best fish in their ponds and compete for prizes. Also in attendance will be a wide variety of vendors, who provide services, equipment and livestock for the hobby. Shows will frequently sponsor seminars and speakers on a wide variety of topics which are open to all attendees.

What is even better, almost everybody present is, in one way or another, an enthusiast, and more than happy to share experiences, solutions, disasters and help at the drop of a question. It is incredibly easy to get a water gardener talking. The hard part is getting them to shut up. Ask a question; present a problem, within an hour you’ll have twenty suggestions and solutions. They may not all work for you, but every one of them has, at one time or another, worked for someone.

Koi shows are noisy, sometimes chaotic, invariably wet, and always fascinating fun. Come join us!

Bob Passovoy

President

MPKS

The Midwest Pond and Koi Society sponsors a Judged Koi Show and Pond Trade Show (June 24-26, 2016) at the MAX in McCook, IL. See their website, www.mpks.org, for more details.

Brief bio: Bob Passovoy stumbled innocently into ponding twenty-three years ago when his wife decided she wanted a water lily. He now operates a 4400 gallon koi pond with 28 koi, a 550 gallon swamp with fancy goldfish, a filtration system that’ll give you nightmares, and (because he left the room at the wrong time), the largest water gardening club in the Midwest.