I treated band of pondweed about 4 or 5 FT around my 1/2 pond with 6LBs of Hydrothol 191 granular on June 15. The pondweed is dead. (It also killed 1 bluegill and 5 medium gizzard shad which is acceptible.)
I would like to plant corkscrew eelgrass to take it's place. How soon can I do this? The product label doesn't say much. I read somewhere that it has a half life of 7 days. The rate I applied it at is below about 1/4 the effective rate for Val. calculating the volume of the pond but I only applied it to a narrow band.
I've ordered about 80 plants. I would like to establish along the shallow edges all the way around the pond. Should I plant them evenly around the bank or in clusters around the pond? Do you just stick them in?
Ecological information 3/4 down the page located in Section 12.
http://www.teamlab.net/docs/msds-documents/hydrothol-191-gran-msds-42810.pdf?sfvrsn=0Can someone decifer the chemical fate information?
My PH is generally around 7.2 or 7.4. I have bottom aeration. It sounds like it needs light to degrade...this saying 24 hour half life with light at a PH of 5?
I'm just wondering when will be a safe time to replant the area.
See page 103 for some additional information of the fate of Hydrothol 191.
http://www.mass.gov/agr/pesticides/aquatic/docs/endothall.pdfI would take at least 1/2 of the plants that you get and plant them in a shallow pan or dish pan with about 3" of garden or heavy field soil, not potting soil. I tie a cord to the container so not to lose it. Submerge the container 12"-2ft in the pond and allow the plants to grow and multiply even as long as next year - June-July. Then take the growing plants and transplant them into your pond. This does not 'put all your eggs in one basket' an the technique works good for me. Spiral eel grass depending on variety is a semi-tropical plant and may not do well in Ohio climate.
Would a kiddie pool with a mix of field soil and sand work outside the pond? Maybe working osmocote into the mix to stimulate growth.
Ditto on Bill's suggestion. Nix the kiddie pool. Not of sufficient depth and no chance of overwintering.
Bill,
A couple of years ago you showed my some red eelgrass. What is that called and how could I get some?
I agree with Instar, nix the kiddie pool. Use a shallow pan or tub that will be submerged in the pond. It will always receive fresh water and will simulate close to in-pond conditions. You will be suprised how well the spiral will grows in tub or pans. What you plant in the pond may not survive due to various reasons. This technique cuts your losses. The pan planting will also allow you to plant the plants at ideal root depth. Plant plants about 2"-4" apart and they should soon send out runners and numerous new plants. Submerge tube of colonized plants in about 2.5 -3 ft of water for winterization. Pull tub back into shallow water in April. Regowth should be apparent in mid-May 2013.
I and several others in the area have red tipped eel grass. It is a variety of Vallisneria americana. I was to a pond Friday evening that had it growing all around the edges down to about 4ft maybe 5ft deep. The owner keeps it raked out of the swimming beach area. The red tipped sends up flower buds about one month earlier than regular eel grass. Flower buds of red tipped are a lot smaller than standard eel grass.
Be very watchful of geese. They can clean out the tubs that Bill is talking about in a very short amount of time in one morning.............
Another reason to have a 0 tolerance for the flying toilets.
Bill, are you hinting that I should go with the red tipped instead?
It the hope with the tub that they will produce seed to spread to the rest of the pond or for runners to jump out or to produce more to be replanted?
Ryan - Not hinting, just answering question of CoachB. Red tipped spreads faster and grows taller than V.a.spiral. It seems to me that the further south one is the faster spiral eelgrass spreads since it is semi-tropical. Personally I would try spiral eel grass first, then if it does not grow for you then explore red tipped which over winters well in plant zone 5.
No the purpose of the tub is to have some growing in better more protected conditions in case the stuff in the pond dies, then you still have some plants to work with. Don't plan on them spreading from seed nor 'creeping' out of the tub. Plants growing in the tub will need to be transplanted into the pond when the tub is full of pants. Tub planting also allows one to check if any contaminating or 'piggy back' exotic unwanted plants, in the form of seeds, spores, fragments, etc., are present in the shippment from the supplier- a very common occurrence. Contaminants will show up in the tub and can be removed. Contaminants are almost impossible to remove once they are established in the open pond. It is similar to quarantining wild fish before introducing them into your pond.
Thanks Bill & essup. Bill according to page 103 of your link, it sounds like 3 weeks in an aerated farm pond is a safe bet for hydrothol...maybe even two weeks but I'm not too sure how far I'd trust 1976 data...you know, the olden days.
Once scientific data has been validated, rarely is it updated.