Blanket weed? You can relax without Chemical Solutions (Garden Ponds & Water Features in general)

Member Name: FORCHARITY

Product:	Garden Ponds & Water Features in general
Date:	13/09/02 (3582 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Natural, Non Chemical

Disadvantages: Slimey sludge

The greatest source of delight in my small garden is the pond. With a shrubbery on three sides and a little rill falling into it, it contains 2000 gallons of water and is 4'6"deep. Beneath the tranquil surface swim eleven fish, three of which are over 20 years old. This is the reason that there are only 11, since their size is such that I don't advertise their presence and they need room.

This sparkling haven needs maintenance. Nothing too heavy, just the pump filter rinsed out if the rill slows and the main filter box cleaned once or twice a year. The bulb of the UV lamp, which kills algae, is replaced annually in the spring. I cannot use plants to oxygenate since the fish eat them as soon as they go in, just as they consume anything unfortunate enough to fall in, and I find quite a few empty snail shells in the bottom.

During an op I wrote some months ago on pondfish preservation, I said that I never use chemicals. I don't care what reassurances are on the packet, I have seen too much heartache caused by an "expert" friend dumping anti-this-that-or-the-other into the water. So what about blanket weed, the scourge of the pond keeper?

Blanket weed is in fact not a weed. It is a thriving and cosmopolitan community of various algaes, impervious to the UV lamp which keeps the water clear of the normal green stuff which clouds the pond in sunlight. During the summer months blanket weed grows at a rate which makes triffids look like starved lichen.

These "weeds" are produced in a dark green fibrous mass which floats out from the sides of the pond and covers and clings to everything, even the submerged pump. It also creates a thick, slimy green sludge in the filter of the pump, thus slowing the water return to your pond. Take a large net and drag across the bottom and you will bring up a thick mat which, when you grab hold to relieve the weight on the net, then just keeps coming. I have pulled upthis stuff by the yard and it is very
heavy, so much of it is there. Since I don't want to inadvertently throw any small wildlife which may be sheltering in it into the dustbin, I leave it to dry out. I started doing this when I found a sweet little newt hidden in some I had pulled out. The blanket weed then dries to a green brown cardboardy substance.

This is the stuff I must prevent from choking my beloved pond. It doesn't do the fish much good either, although I have seen them grazing on it. They line up facing the sides of the pond and the loud sucking noises can be heard from the house.

The product I have used safely and effectively for years is Interpet Pond Balance. This is a non-chemical formula which balances the water, thus encourages growth of your pond plants and at the same time leaves no environment for blanket weed to grow. Any of this dastardly weed already established dies and breaks down. For this reason it is best to remove the pesky stuff if possible before dosing, as oxygen levels could drop during this breakdown. Alternatively use an air line or fountain. To be honest I just turn up the flow of my pump and have had no problems.

Pond Balance can be found on the shelf of most good fish and pond nurseries, generally among other products by Interpet. Here I would emphasise that you shouldn't mistakenly pick up Pool Balance. I have not found this to work as effectively. Look for a green box with a picture of a lily pool on the front and a mauve flash. The Interpet logo is in white and distinctively placed on the top left hand corner. The pretty pink crystals inside the box are sealed in polythene and a plastic measuring spoon is supplied. Also within is a small leaflet with easy to read instructions for measuring the area of your pond and for dosing. The contents are enough for 3 treatments of a 500 gallon pond (2250 litres).

The instructions tell you to use one measure of Pond Balance for each 80 galls (360 litres), these to be put into a bucket o
f warm water and stirred until the crystals disperse and I use a watering can, kept specifically for the pond, instead of a bucket. Then all you need to do is spray evenly over the water surface. That's it. The leaflet does tell you how to measure the capacity of your pond. We are told that the water may cloud for a couple of days, but I have never noticed this. Repeat the dose every ten days until the problem is eradicated then once a month until the summer is over. The chemistry of your water will determine how long this takes and how often you may need to use it. I dosed my own pond three days ago and am already seeing results. In fact I shall have to keep an eye on it because, with the loss of blanket weed, the foam filter in my submerged pump will no longer become clogged. " Lovely" you may say, as the water rushes so much faster back into the pool. In fact, if I don't turn my pump down, the main box filter will overflow with the now faster circulation through the system.

The price I paid 3 days ago was £7.40, which I think is good value as it does what it says, and I am left with a safer environment for my fish. This morning when I checked, the blanket weed was already looking decidedly sickly and beginning to fall away fronm the sides of the pond. Should you be interested, the 3 twenty year old plus fish are a deep golden ghost carp, golden tench (medium sized, but huge by GT standards) and a crucian carp with a fantail, although I accept that this last is certainly a crossbreed. As well as some rather flashy looking koi are two mirror carp, of the proportions you would expect from these food fish allowed to grow as pets over quite a few years, and a couple of baby mirror who were unplanned and are already threatening to outstrip the koi in size. Sometimes I swear their food bill in the summer is higher than that for my dogs.

Pond Balance is as much a part of my pool maintenance as the filters and saves me the horrid, and never completely su
ccessful, chore of pulling the weed out by hand.

Interpet have a website at http:/www.interpet.com. At the moment this is not available, but should be soon.

This opinion was donated to the FORCHARITY account by Aefra. If you'd like to read more about this initiative go to the FORCHARITY profile page where all will be explained!

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