Pond Boss
Posted By: Hammertime75 HELP too many weeds in my pond! - 07/09/20 07:14 PM
I added aeration to my pond this summer. I have a unit with 2 heads that has been on since early May. I have so many weeds now that the kids can barely use their little boat. All of the weeds are at the pond perimeter. The water is very clear from the aeration but I dont know if that is why i have more weeds this year or what? is too much aeration bad? what can i use to get rid of these weeds? help and reccomendations please! pond is maybe 1/3-1/2 acre? pics for reference to show the size and the weeds i have.

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Posted By: Quarter Acre Re: HELP too many weeds in my pond! - 07/09/20 08:01 PM
Clearer water often times means more vegetation because the light can get down to more of the pond's floor yielding more lit soils for the plants to grow in. It's hard to tell what you veggies are...kind looks like chara. Does it smell skunky or like strong garlic if you smoosh it between your fingers? Put some in a clear bottle with clean water and take a could more pics and post. There might also be something else in there too, something kinda stemy...I can't tell. How deep is the water where it's growing at the deepest. Shallow clear ponds can be taken over by pond plants.

ID the stuff first and those in the know will be able to recommend a herbicide. Manual removal may also be an option, but can often be an ongoing effort (more so than herbicides). Chara, for example, can propagate from broken pieces and make more the more it's gets broken up. And, Chara (a type of algae) can be more desirable than FA (filamentous algae). FA is some slimy stuff to have in the pond in excess. I'd rather have the chara. If you wipe out what's there...something will likely replace it.
Posted By: Journeyman Re: HELP too many weeds in my pond! - 07/10/20 12:18 PM
Hard to tell from those pictures but if your state is anything like Wisconsin, Eurasian Watermilfoil is a strong candidate.

If attempting to remove that stuff manually, be advised the tiny fragments left behind, will start new plants.
Not that removing manually is bad, it lowers the nutrient load. Where as just killing it, would let it fall to the bottom and turn into fertilizer, for next years batch.

The good news, your pond is small enough to manage without breaking the bank. Pond dye will help reduce sunlight from the deeper plants and would be a good now and as a followup. Spot treating with a granular herbicide would help for sure, but if it's in your pond at all it will continue to spread from what you missed. Floridone will wipe it out completely, along with any good plants.

If it were me, and it was not long ago, I would go Floridone and Pond Dye to eradicate that nasty stuff.
Posted By: Jambi Re: HELP too many weeds in my pond! - 07/10/20 01:26 PM
Second the pond dye... Don't need a lot of dye to reduce light levels and slow growth. You can get a jump on slowing the growth next year in early spring.
Posted By: esshup Re: HELP too many weeds in my pond! - 07/12/20 11:57 PM
Hard to tell unless you get a strand or two out of the pond and get a good close up picture of it. Possibly Horned Pondweed with a covering of Filamentous Algae. If you use a herbicide to treat it you have to mix with an algaecide or the herbicide won't make it to the target plant.
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