Pond experts

[paul Zernikazof]

I have plenty of plant life in my pond plus a bio filter with UV light running. And I still get blanket weed. Not as much as last year but enough to be a b****y nuisance. Any ideas anyone?

[BjornTobyStomped]

paulz said:

I have plenty of plant life in my pond plus a bio filter with UV light running. And I still get blanket weed. Not as much as last year but enough to be a b****y nuisance. Any ideas anyone?

There are some chemical solutions to the problem available, I have resorted to using it a couple of times this year.

But mainly I've let the fish nibble on it by cutting down on their food which seems to have done the trick.

Plus I have a pond hoover which is good at getting rid of some of it too.

Hope this helps!

[paul Zernikazof]

tobyd said:

paulz said:

I have plenty of plant life in my pond plus a bio filter with UV light running. And I still get blanket weed. Not as much as last year but enough to be a b****y nuisance. Any ideas anyone?

There are some chemical solutions to the problem available, I have resorted to using it a couple of times this year.

But mainly I've let the fish nibble on it by cutting down on their food which seems to have done the trick.

Plus I have a pond hoover which is good at getting rid of some of it too.

Hope this helps!

Thanks Toby I should have said I don't have any fish in the main pond as i have a population of newts and have been advised that they would decamp if I introcuced fish. The newts are also a reason why I am not keen to use chemicals to clear the weed

[Fi]

Paul, try to get hold of some Greater Pond Snails in local ponds and lakes. I got mine from a small lake in a castle's gardens. Also try to collect some of their eggs, which are usually attached to bits of vegetation or rotting leaves. I did this years ago and dumped them in our pond It took a couple of years for them to get rid of the blanket weed and I finally started bringing in blanket weed from another pond to feed them! Since you have a semi-wildlife pond, I'd be very tempted to add a bucket full of water from a natural pond - that way you'll get all of the microscopic plant and animal life that exists in natural ponds. The frogs and newts, and especially their tadpoles) will appreciate the addition to their diets. You'd have to turn off the filter though, with the result that the water will not be sparking clean - but get hold of a microscope and see what you've been missing.

[Sharon Sharealike]

Brill, Fi! I will tell the father in law as his little pond is full of it.

[Fi]

sharon said:

Brill, Fi! I will tell the father in law as his little pond is full of it.

I suggest he takes a child as cover. The National Trust lady looked at me with a very odd expression when I asked if I could get a bucket of mud out of her lake. I also found her advice to 'be careful not to fall in' posed some difficulty when trying to think of a suitable response that didn't involve hysterical laughter.
Apart from that, it has to be the Greater Pond Snail - other snails will eat algae, but only the GPS is voracious enough to do the job properly.

[Shuggie]

fi said:

sharon said:

Brill, Fi! I will tell the father in law as his little pond is full of it.

I suggest he takes a child as cover. The National Trust lady looked at me with a very odd expression when I asked if I could get a bucket of mud out of her lake. I also found her advice to 'be careful not to fall in' posed some difficulty when trying to think of a suitable response that didn't involve hysterical laughter.

.. all of which reminds me of a certain Prickly Pear "incident" ...

Incidentally .. I gave it the bums rush when it reached the ceiling last year

[Fi]

shuggie said:

fi said:

I suggest he takes a child as cover. The National Trust lady looked at me with a very odd expression when I asked if I could get a bucket of mud out of her lake. I also found her advice to 'be careful not to fall in' posed some difficulty when trying to think of a suitable response that didn't involve hysterical laughter.

You really are a heartless beast aren't you? After going to all that trouble to pinch the fruit (and who taught me the gentle art of pinching stuff from public gardens without getting caught), I expected better.

.. all of which reminds me of a certain Prickly Pear "incident" ...

Incidentally .. I gave it the bums rush when it reached the ceiling last year

[paul Zernikazof]

fi said:

Paul, try to get hold of some Greater Pond Snails in local ponds and lakes. I got mine from a small lake in a castle's gardens. Also try to collect some of their eggs, which are usually attached to bits of vegetation or rotting leaves. I did this years ago and dumped them in our pond It took a couple of years for them to get rid of the blanket weed and I finally started bringing in blanket weed from another pond to feed them! Since you have a semi-wildlife pond, I'd be very tempted to add a bucket full of water from a natural pond - that way you'll get all of the microscopic plant and animal life that exists in natural ponds. The frogs and newts, and especially their tadpoles) will appreciate the addition to their diets. You'd have to turn off the filter though, with the result that the water will not be sparking clean - but get hold of a microscope and see what you've been missing. {/color]

Thanks Fi. I will certainly attempt to source some pond snails. The filter was installed to clear the algae that I had all last year and I am reluctant to turn it off and go back to bright green water. Still maybe the snails will do the job.

[carlott]

fi said:

shuggie said:

You really are a heartless beast aren't you? After going to all that trouble to pinch the fruit (and who taught me the gentle art of pinching stuff from public gardens without getting caught), I expected better.

.. all of which reminds me of a certain Prickly Pear "incident" ...

Incidentally .. I gave it the bums rush when it reached the ceiling last year

Excuse me asking but are you the same Fi offering to give Sheil lessons on how to quote?

[Fi]

carlott said:

fi said:

Excuse me asking but are you the same Fi offering to give Sheil lessons on how to quote?

You are excused.

*drums fingers on desk*

[Fi]

paulz said:

fi said:

Paul, try to get hold of some Greater Pond Snails in local ponds and lakes. I got mine from a small lake in a castle's gardens. Also try to collect some of their eggs, which are usually attached to bits of vegetation or rotting leaves. I did this years ago and dumped them in our pond It took a couple of years for them to get rid of the blanket weed and I finally started bringing in blanket weed from another pond to feed them! Since you have a semi-wildlife pond, I'd be very tempted to add a bucket full of water from a natural pond - that way you'll get all of the microscopic plant and animal life that exists in natural ponds. The frogs and newts, and especially their tadpoles) will appreciate the addition to their diets. You'd have to turn off the filter though, with the result that the water will not be sparking clean - but get hold of a microscope and see what you've been missing.

Thanks Fi. I will certainly attempt to source some pond snails. The filter was installed to clear the algae that I had all last year and I am reluctant to turn it off and go back to bright green water. Still maybe the snails will do the job.

Good luck Paul - if you get lots of nice microscopic pond life, as well as the snails, they should clean up the bright green water - I certainly suggest giving it a season to see if it works. If you can't source any snails I may be able to help. The pond we inherited needs clearing out and I'll take a look to see if there's any snail eggs since we brough some of our snails with us. It may be too late for this year, but if you still don't have any snails by next spring, let me know. I can't think of any reason why the eggs wouldn't survive being posted.

[Shuggie]

fi said:

You really are a heartless beast aren't you? After going to all that trouble to pinch the fruit (and who taught me the gentle art of pinching stuff from public gardens without getting caught), I expected better.

I do not pinch .. I merely re-locate in a vandal-free environment ..

[Fi]

shuggie said:

fi said:

You really are a heartless beast aren't you? After going to all that trouble to pinch the fruit (and who taught me the gentle art of pinching stuff from public gardens without getting caught), I expected better.

I do not pinch .. I merely re-locate in a vandal-free environment ..

Yes dear, very true and highly commendable. I would expect nothing less.

[carlott]

I once worked with someone who would walk through Walsall Arboretum surreptitiously pinching small bits of plant. Once rooted he then sold the small plants via his Dad's Paper shop.

[Lucy Lastic]

fi said:

shuggie said:

I do not pinch .. I merely re-locate in a vandal-free environment ..

Yes dear, very true and highly commendable. I would expect nothing less.

Good! Now I can tell PML that I am NOT the only person who leaves public gardens with full pockets.

[Fi]

carlott said:

I once worked with someone who would walk through Walsall Arboretum surreptitiously pinching small bits of plant. Once rooted he then sold the small plants via his Dad's Paper shop.

Nice one! When we were rich and posh in Australia, we used to employ a once a week gardener to keep things in order, mowing the lawns and stuff like that. He also did the garden of the managing director of the company I worked for. I mentioned once that I'd like some Agapanthus, so he said he'd get me some, which he duly did, and asked a very reasonable price for the plants. A couple of days later, I happened to be chatting with the managing director when he mentioned that he was baffled, but someone had pinched some Agapanthus from his garden! It was definitely a major change the subject as quickly as possible time. What I later said to the gardener was unprintable. *grins*

[Shuggie]

My dear old Granny was an inveterate pincher .. whenever she used to visit places like Hampton Court, her capacious handbag was always full to the brim with snipped off bits and pieces

[mysterymermaid]

Grass carp are the natural answer,they are available from size 2"-3" onwards.
Its been a big problem this year. I dont believe in chemicals I like to keep a pond as natural as possible ,theres one exception its called pond balance and it contains a lot of natural products that make it hard for blanket weed to take hold, you treat the pond with it every month.
You can also get a twisty fork on a telescopic handle, the more you twist it around the more blanket weed you remove.

www.midlandwaterlife.com