In an effort to diversify my fertilization options (see also "Southern Excellence - Experiences?") I also tried a few sacks of Trophymaker. Up until this year, I've used nothing but liquid 10-34-0 or 11-37-0 because of cost and availability issues.

I was quite pleased at how easily the powdered fertilizer dissolved in a bucket of water. I'm not sure if it could be dispersed in the pond as a dry powder without dissoving in solution, so for my initial tests this year I dissolved appropriate amounts in a bucket of water before dumping into the propwash.

I conducted informal tests on two small ponds and Trophymaker established a great bloom in both. The combination of low nitrogen and high phosphorous (even better than Southern Excellence) was a desireable feature. Cost was similar to SE, but disposal of the plastic bag was much easier than the bulky bucket.

Trophymaker (and SE)is quite a bit more expensive than liquid fertilizer, but no equipment is needed to apply it.

A question to those who regularly use Trophymaker. Is it necessary to dissolve it in water before applying it to the pond? The few handfuls I tossed in the water appeared to sink rapidly in the water column despite being much smaller than traditional granular fertilizers.

One side benefit to Trophymaker I observed . . . don't laugh. I was changing the setting on a clients feeder timer and fire ants got all over my hand and went to work. About 20 minutes later I was mixing some Trophymaker with my hand because I had forgotten to get my paddle out of the truck. Those fire ant stings didn't whelp up or do any of the nasty things they normally do. A few weeks later I had a chance to test it again, this time on my foot. I foolishly was weeding the garden in sandals and really got into them. Remembering my previous success with Trophymaker, I immediately poured some in a bucket and stuck my foot in the solution. Result . . . Visible sting marks but no swelling or nasties, with greatly reduced itching and little pain. The fertilizer salts must leach out the poison or something.

Anyway, fire ants aside, I'm interested in other's experiences with Trophymaker.