Natural Pond

Question:
How to revive my natural pond?
We purchased a house about 2 years ago. The people who lived here before us did not take care of the property and left the place in pretty bad shape. There is a natural pond in the back that is scummy, full of all kinds of plant life, and during the summer can be pretty stagnant. It is a large pond about 5500 sq ft. There are lots of frogs and turtles and toads in it but really no fish. It is natural so there is no liner concrete, rubber nothing, just a dirt bottom. The tributeries leading away from the pond dry up and are just a hunk of scum during late summer. We were told that the people before us rerouted waterways dealing with this pond, but we do not know for sure. We really have a lovely piece of property and would like our pond to be clean and pretty. What can I do to fix this problem? I have searched on the web and only found things dealing with man made rubber bottom or concrete ponds.

Answer:
Start by raking out all the old plant material. Wash it off and put back about half of it. After that, put in a floating pump to circulate the water. Plant around the edges with natural bog plants. If you put fish in, use goldfish only and do not feed them.