Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations New Owner with grass question.

So, I'm wanting to clean the water edge of this grass. To many snakes around and my dogs like the water. I was told about aquatic weed killer but not sure what to use. I found this forum while searching.

What would you like your water edge to look like? Sand, gravel, concrete, bare dirt,or something else?

Agree with Theo, what do you want?

You also might need a proper plant ID if you are going to treat with the correct herbicide.

Some of the plants in the pics look like types of sedge. (Which are not true grasses.)

Here is a basic sedge info link.

Some Common Sedges


Also, your edges are very poorly defined. I assume your property is very flat?

If the water level usually stays nearly constant, then you could do some work to make more well-defined edges - if you like that look. Many people do, many people don't.

I just want the waters edge clear. Property is not flat at all. From the front of the property to the pond is roughly a 20 foot drop. I plan to try to identify the grass and plants. We just purchased this house a month ago, so I will be working to fix everything. Also, I only own half of the pond so I want to make sure I do everything correctly.

I have a two and a half acre pond. I take my weedeater along the banks periodically through the warmer months. It takes me about 30 minutes to cover all of the banks if I don't let it get out of hand. It's become easy and quick to maintain. I see that you have vegetation emerging from the water, more so than I do, but I still get in their and chop that up as well.

Here is a new site for plant identification and treatment:

https://extension.msstate.edu/content/list-aquatic-weeds

Emergent plants are typically treated with glyphosate. Get a formulation for aquatic use. Aquaneat is one brand. Mix in a tank sprayer with a non-ionic surfactant.

If you only own half the pond, then I think the only common things you could do wrong would be to improperly use herbicides or introduce an aquatic species to the pond that messes up your current ecosystem that presumably you both like.

A lot of the plants in your pictures look like "transitional" species. They actually like the gradational change from your dry ground to the shallow water. If you deepened the pond right at the shoreline and made a more defined edge that would change your look.

Also, in windy places, people frequently put down stone on pond edge to stop erosion. I think it also creates a nice, "clean" look in many cases.

You probably have several material options available to you. Put down heavy landscape fabric first, and then cover with a stone you find attractive. If your pond is very large, they can place the rock using a slinger truck.

If you are considering that idea, you should probably google "aggregate suppliers" in your area, then find the decorative rock on their website. You should be able to view pics and see if there is anything you like. (What they call decorative rock, will still be sold by the ton or truckload.)

That option would be a lot of work now, but save you a lot of maintenance work in the future.

Finally, if you read some threads in the forum about other topics that interest you, there might be same pond pics that give you some more ideas.

Congrats on your new pond! Have fun on your improvements.