Hello all,
I apologize in advance for the length of this:
A little background:
I live in Southern New England and have an approximately 1/4 acre pond (100' approximate circumference). We have owned the property for 4 years. As far as we can tell the deepest point is 6' right now, so probably 7' when the water is higher. The majority of pond is that depth as the shallow areas reach 6' within 10' of shore. The pond is man made and was put in in the '70's to irrigate the garden. It is not lined. It is spring fed from the bottom and has an outflow (though the spring doesn't feed it so much that it is always outflowing, only when we get lots of rain). It has a stone bottom (not that I can see it) and the man who installed it used to swim in it and said it was 9' deep. The trees have certainly grown in around it as I have pictures from the 90's.
The owner before us, who bought the place in the 90's, added goldfish. They are 8"+ man-eaters. Well, not really, but they certainly do breed like rabbits. The pond has a lot of fish and minnows. I can't even begin to estimate. There are also tons of frogs, newts, turtles, dragonflies and other water bugs- and leeches. The edge is planted with water iris and there are some shallow water grasses and perhaps 10 cattails. We have done nothing to the pond since we bought the place with the exception of cutting overhanging branches the first Winter. The water is sometimes clear and sometimes murky. It has no noticeable odor and no algae.
My Goal:
I would like to make the pond more swimmable. The two obstacles as I see them are muck and leeches. Our dogs lay in the shallows all the time and never have had a leech on them. But my husband went into the pond twice and both times before he could get past his knees he had a leech on his leg. And while they didn't get to latch on it's not an experience that I wish to have!
I have read extensively on natural swimming ponds and am trying to figure out the best way to improve the pond. The following are ideas I have considered that would reduce muck and thus the leech habitat and make the pond more swimmable without changing the natural look of the pond. But most seem quite expensive to do in a pond of this size.:
- Add a net across the pond in the Fall. Not cheap to get a net that size though!
-Set leech traps. I plan to try this this weekend.
-Trap and remove minnows and fish to reduce their impact (not sure what I will do with them though).
-Add aeration. I am considering the Airmax 20SW but it's wicked expensive so will have to wait.
-Add bacteria and enzymes. I am not sure if they work. But I doubt they will hurt. There are so many to choose from though. And again, they are expensive for a pond of this size.
-A pond vac that empties back into the pond, something like the Pond Monsta. It seems, however, impractical to use a pond vac in a pond of this size.
- Perhaps if I can get rid of the muck I would also add gravel to the pond edges and swim area.
-Use a skimmer. But again, the size of the pond makes this seems impractical.
-Add a filter- again the size makes it seem impractical.
-Add a UV filter. Again, big pond.
-Planting more water plants, such as upright rhizome lillies. I don't want the whole pond covered in lilies.
I appreciate any thoughts on this situation and any feedback as to the ideas I listed that I am tossing around in my head. Where is the best place to start and where is my money best spent? Thank you to all who respond.
