— Next, let’s look at the offspring of Iroha. What kind of parent is Iroha?

Hiroaki: This koi also comes from the Haruka bloodline.

— I really liked Iroha. It had a beni that’s hard to describe.

Hiroaki: Yes, Iroha had a uniquely distinctive beni.

— This is a koi we purchased at two years old, when it was 59 cm (⑧―A). By the time it was three years old, it had grown to 75 cm (⑧―B). Its body had gained considerable width, and the beni had become richer. At four years old (⑧―C), it had gained even more width, and sashi had developed beautifully. Two years later, at six years old, it reached 84 cm (⑧―D).

Hiroaki: Iroha didn’t grow explosively in length, but it was a koi that matured while maintaining soft, beautiful beni.
— How long did you keep Iroha spawning?

Hiroaki: About seven years. Its offspring are still healthy, so depending on the size of the fry pond this year, we might use one of them.

— I think it was an excellent koi among the second generation. This is also an offspring of Iroha (⑨―A). It was 61 cm at the age of two. It was a bit slender, but by the time it was four years old (⑨―B), it had developed into this shape, and one year later, it had acquired a solid, well-proportioned body (⑨―C).

The next koi returned to Matsue Nishikigoi Centre from Yokohama Nishikigoi. Its appearance at three years old is shown here (⑩―A), at four years old (⑩―B), five years old (⑩―C), and this is how it looks now (⑩―D). It has a somewhat complex pattern, but as it gained thickness, it developed a full, well-rounded body and became a koi worth seeing.

I believe this is a child from Iroha’s final year (⑪―A). We purchased it when it was two years old, measuring 58 cm in length. By the time it was three years old, it had started to thicken nicely (⑪―B).These were the offspring of the second-generation koi at Matsue Nishikigoi Centre.