Pond Boss Forums AQUATIC VEGETATION Controlling unwanted plants planktonic algae vs bluegreen does it matter?

I'm not exactly sure what I have and I think I'm going to dump something in my pond to help the problem. here is what my pond water looks like... [img:center]https://www.doitbest.com/media/W1siZiIsI...578b9f8f5989a50[/img]

the water is green and seams worse after a rain.

after bill cody's post i think i want to us a Peroxygen product.
first question... is this planktonic algae, blue green algae or does it even matter as far as treatment goes?

second question, there is such a large range on how much to put in my pond. green clean pro suggests 20-90lbs per acre foot for heavy growth and 2-9lbs for maintenance. pak27 suggests 3-100lbs per acre foot. I'm not sure how severe the problem is, do you have a recommendation on how much to apply? should i use several doses?

3/4 acre pond 10 max debth
midwest Ohio
pond neglected for years
2013, installed aerator system running 12hrs at night
lots of vegetation around pond, lots of muck on bottom

thanks for your time
adam

There is a good article in Pond Boss Magazine this month about the difference in planktonic and bluegreen Algae (actually a bacteria) and their effects on the pond community.

Might be worth your time to get your hands on a copy.

I also have problems with what I am pretty sure is bluegreen algae in the heat of the summer. I wish I understood all I knew about it and I don't know much.

There is definitely a difference and the bluegreen algae is undesirable for a number of reasons.

Adam, I'm just a fairly new pond owner, not an expert. But I can say that if it is blue green algae, please don't allow your pets to swim in it or drink it. Can be toxic. I wouldn't eat any fish from it, either, at least until the algae is gone.

Also, Bob Lusk has drilled this into our heads: The real problem isn't the algae. Rather, algae is a symptom of the real problem, which is excess fertility (likely phosphorus).

If it gets worse after a rain, most likely runoff from highly fertile soil. Reduce that source, and the algae won't be a future issue. Kill it but don't change the runoff, and it will be a future issue.

I have had a bout or two with blue- green algae..... it really smells bad. The air around the pond stinks. Bottle some in a water bottle nearly full with algae and water and cap it . Wait a few hours then un cap and smell it if a musty nasty smell then it’s probably blue green....

It looks like a form of cyanobactor to me.....PM Bill Cody and see about sending him a sample to identify....Bill, I believe, can also suggest a treatment or chemical your algal species is sensitive to.

Some of the WORST things done in a pond are just blindly "throwing" things at an issue.....Ponds are in constant change, but one mistake can cause unintended consequences that take years and truck loads of money to fix....

I know my pond is full of nutrients, but I don't have the money to dig it out. Had a rough estimate of $10k. If I can get by with a small does of green clean every year to keep it away I can do that.

At this point according to the Green Clean Pro website it will kill either blue green or planktonic algae...I'm just having trouble deciding how much to buy and apply.

adam

The year I had blue green algae I added tilapia to the mix and it and other algae went away, don’t know if that’s a coincidence or if the tilapia ate enough of the muck from leaves and stuff that it lowered the available nutrients to the point that the blue/green didn’t like it and retreated. Can’t say for sure but it was gone several weeks after adding tilapia