Pond Boss Forums AQUATIC VEGETATION Controlling unwanted plants Use Dye to Control Chara?

I have a 6-year old 30 acre pond stocked with Tiger Bass/Bream. Goal is large bass. I want a fertilized pond (and had one) but have been unable to fertilize due to Chara/Muskgrass for the last 3 years. It gets worse every year. I have 60 grass carp and am adding 150 more (and realize I need even more but they are $10/ea). I’ve tried fertilizing early (February) to get the visibility down to control the Chara but no luck. Then the Chara takes over. I’ve been spraying with Cutrine Plus which helps, but there seems to be too much to control with Cutrine.

My question for the forum is about dye. Could I dye the pond to eliminate the sunlight going through and control the Chara that way? Then start fertilizing in the Spring to keep it under control? Any negatives to dyeing a pond? I’ve never done it but am getting desperate and looking for some way other than adding $5,000 worth of grass Carp.

6yr pond with uncontrollable Chara has to be some sort of nutrient load in the pond is my guess. Full disclosure I have never treated for this or encountered it at my BoW. With that as a base there are a few choices based on my limited knowledge.

Option 1 - Treatment with Alum Sulfate would lock up the phosphorus but can also have impacts on water chemistry. I think there is also a product called phoslock that might help here if it is driven by high phosphorus. Phoslock

Option 2 - Other chemical treatment that would kill the Chara which I'm guessing could be used in conjunction with Grass Carp or possibly Tilapia.Tilapia vs Chara - Pond Boss

Grass Carp can be helpful but the bigger they get the lazier they are. As they age I hear they are less and less helpful on eating and still count against the total carrying capacity of the water.
Tilapia on the other hand would require annual stocking as they "should" die every year so they don't overpopulate the pond. The good news with them is they will help to convert some of the plant matter to flesh, should provide an additional food source for your fish, and when die each year some of that nutrient load is removed from the pond as long as you remove the dead fish.

With either the Grass Carp or the Tilapia there may be a plant they like better than chara that will get eaten first.

Option 3 - Pond dye as you mentioned should darken the water similar to fertilizer so the Chara can't grow in as deep of water but that is where the benefit of it stops. It will also limit the algae blooms as they need the sunlight to flourish.

Again, this is just from what I have seen on traded info on the site and my own personal understanding from other sources. There may be other options out there that one of the pros can help with. If nothing else, you have some additional info to read through to make a solid plan. Good luck on the project.

Option 4 - might be enhancing your existing plants in the water to help soak up some of those nutrients.

TAMU on Muskgrass

Looks pretty close to what I listed above with some additional info.

Thank you Boondoggle!

Dying a pond that large may get expensive really quickly.
As I found out after dying my pond at 1/4 the recommended dosage, The pond got really clear and it basically killed all the plankton bloom.
Did a great job with the Algae growth and submerged weed over 2' down, had no effect on anything shoreline or close to the surface.
Pond dye should also be applied early spring before stuff starts growing, This time of year it will do you no good

Most welcome. I did a little googling this afternoon on this with the thought that came to mind on option 4. I wonder if some plants are better than others when it comes to aiding with nutrient loads in the pond...ie....heavy feeders. My search results returned options of Pickerel Weed, Lily, Lotus...which made me wonder if this is because they displace the algae growing zones, take up the nutrients or some of both.

Not to hi-jack the thread. It's not uncommon to see questions about FA or Chara on the forum. Maybe there are some choices better than others to help balance nutrient loads? Any of the pros have thoughts on this?

What is the alkalinity of your pond water? I wouldn't add too many TGC because you need underwater plants in your pond. They will eat many of those before touching Chara.

Instead of using Cutrine Plus liquid, use Cutrine Plus granules and treat the Chara early in the year when it's still a bright green. Cutrine Plus liquid is for 24" and less water depth.

What is your water clarity using a secchi disk?

I agree. I've priced it and the dye will be too expensive.

Not sure of the alkalinity, but we've never had to add lime when we've tested.

Good idea on the granules. I'll try that where the Chara is growing in deeper water.

Clarity is over 36".

I am no expert, but I know from experience with using the pond dye. Biggest mistake I’ve made yet. It didn’t help the algae at all, and made my pond look like I killed a family of smurfs in it! Now after several 4” + rain storms and multiple overflows it has still not even come back to close to natural color and the algae came back and my pond is now green. It cut visibility in half within 4 days of using. I thought about adding some black to try and help dilute back to natural color, but have yet to try. Steer clear of dye is my suggestion, I am partial to natural looking ponds though.

Makes sense. Thaks NC

I use pond dye.

Mixed in with the Roundup in our sprayer to help keep track of where we have spot sprayed.