Anyone used the 'V' shaped water weed cutter advertised in the magazine? If so, how efficient is it and will it work on cattails? I love my cattails but want to do some grooming.
Toby

Toby,

It works great for thinning them out. It wacks them off right at the base and they immediately float to the surface. I would wait until they float to shore and rake them out of the pond. But the cattails will regrow.

However, if you have lots, and they are tightly grouped, it is still doable but hard work.

I would suggest wearing gloves and check you rope for weaknesses especially where the rope meets the tool.

One thing I used to do when I had cattails, is I would treat them with a chemical, and when they died and turned yellow, I would then cut them off removing the plant material. I no longer have cattails as they were too difficult to "thin out" in my pond.

Toby - In addition to what Cecil said, if you first chemically kill the cattails cut them when they are starting to yellow as Cecil recommended. If you let them turn brown they are very difficult to cut. When brown the cattails are leathery and tough to cut.

Spraying them first then cutting to remove bulky plant mass is no doubt best. Just cutting them without spraying will result in rapid regrowth of rootstock.

PS - I use my Y cutter to manage my underwater plants. The Y cutter is extremly sharp and a dangerous tool if not used carefully and properly. New blades are definately sharp as rasors and not child friendly. Keep the tool away from kids!

Unfortunately, I end up "pruning" several stands of cattails each summer. The weed cutters are great for this, but for dense stands, they have some shorter blade attachments that I use by starting on the outside and working my way across. Hip or chestwaders ared needed for this since I never throw the cutter, just reach out and pull back quickly. When you get good, you can also use it like a pitchfork for floating leaves. If you can't find the short blades, fishmgr@hotmail.com
Robert B

Thanks for replies Cecil and Bill. I have 1.5 acre pond so I can afford a little more time screwing around with the weeds than you guys get to. The cattails in my pond are just so natural looking in their clumpings that I just cant poison them all right now. Hence the reason I was looking for a control mechanism. But I do want to keep them in their clumps and not let them take over so the Cecil's eradication program is on hold for now. But I did order one today on both of your advice. thanks,
Toby

You can spray the perimeter of the cattails or just areas you want reduced and not kill all of them. Cattails that do not get coated with spray will mostly survive. It will not take long and your attractive smaller clumps will overrun the perimeter of your pond.