What Are Your Aquatic Weed Control Options?
There is not a thing in the world people like more than a bit of plant killing, especially in their pond, or even their fishpond where it’d make major issues for the fish as well as you. Fish do not like navigating through a huge underwater forest any more than the rest of us, so it is a good idea to control those plants at the bottom of the pond, before some of them turn into that carnivorous plant from Jumanji.
An excess of aquatic plant life may cause problems ranging from watercraft motors being jammed, to poor results when fishing, to children experiencing a horrible time attempting to swim in your pond. None of these are things you desire, so it’s best to destroy the root of the problem before it even begins if you can.
You have a couple choices at your disposal, options that go from biological control, meaning the use of fish that simply govern the aquatic life population, to covering your entire pond with a plastic lining…which seems a pretty drastic step, but hey, do whatever suits you.
So let’s go over a few of your choices, and then you may decide the one that is suited for your situation, but remember that these are only a very small selection of options, and you must consult with different pond owners, or professionals to learn about every single option available to you.
Harvesting – Getting rid of the plants through manual labor, is definitely a great option. Of course, if the plant life is not on the shore, or isn’t|is not on the surface of the water, you may find yourself investing in some scuba equipment to get down there without drowning. If you do not know the dynamics of diving, or can’t stop breathing for an incredibly long time, it’s advisable for you to consult the professionals. As a matter of fact, there’s companies who specialize in cleaning the bottom of bodies of water, therefore you will be in pretty good hands in that regard.
Chemicals – There’s chemicals at your disposal to rid yourself of this pesky aquatic life. A few of these chemicals are Fluridone,2,4-D, Glyphosate, Diquat, Endothall. Of course, it is never suggested for you to utilize any sort of herbicide or chemical to eradicate plant life, which isn’t dissimilar to the reason it’s not advised you toss a live wire into a pond to catch your prize fish. Utilizing herbicides may prove detrimental for fish, in addition to any other life which you may have within the pond. Use these carefully, or even better, do not utilize them period unless you absolutely have to.
Dye – You could purchase a huge selection of chemical dye that will tint the color of your water, and thereby reduce the amount of sunlight for any aquatic plants. it is best to do this at the beginning of spring for best results.
Lining – Lining the bottom of your pond with a type of plastic is additionally a viable choice, as that will halt the growth of any sort of water plant life. Keep in mind that it can get expensive, so consider the size of your pond, as well as how much plastic that you will require. Of course this is a viable choice for compact fish ponds, though maybe not quite so much for a whole lake in the backyard.
Keep in mind that there’s tons of ways to stop aquatic life from invading the pond, and to find the technique which is good for you, consult a specialist or talk to some other pond keepers.
This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 30th, 2009 at 7:50 pm and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.