‘Algae is like grass when
cropped, it grows faster‘
POND
CARE
Andy McConnachie from Aqua Landscape Design answers grass; when cropped, it grows faster in order to maximise its
a much asked question about controlling pond algae and survival. Every time you pull algae out of your pond, you are
warns that every time you pull algae out of your pond, you
!
encouraging it to grow faster. All the microscopic cells that
are encouraging it to grow faster. break off as you remove the algae will form brand new algae
!
strands. So prevention is better than cure.
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lilies and other aquatic plants, as these contribute to the
nutrient levels.
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excessive fish waste, or even just decaying waste food if the
fish don’t eat it.
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products, such as Extract of Barley Straw to keep the growth
of algae under control. Start dosing early and dose regularly.
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A problem every pond owner has to face but when dealing with algae,
prevention is better than cure
grown sufficiently to need mowing, then it is time to
start algae prevention.
Q. We have this horrible green, slimy, stringy algae
on our pond. I clean it out every day, and every day
it comes back. It seems to choke my plants. We have
plenty of plants supposed to help with that. I never
fill the pond with tap water but use rain water. Do you
have any suggestions that will help with this problem? I
am getting desperate!
A. Algae occurs for a number of reasons and if you can deal
with some of these you have a greater chance of preventing
it returning. Algae cells use sunlight and nutrients from
water to produce food and grow by cell division which
allows them to grow very quickly, especially in the warmer
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months. In colder months they still grow, but slowly and are
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difficult to treat due to most treatments being ineffective in
water temperatures below 5 degrees centigrade. Algae cells !"#$%&';))&*+&,*+#&3$%&
reproduce sexually and produce spores, which allow them
to adapt to new environments and to remain in the pond as
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spores through the winter so that they can grow back when
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the weather is warmer.
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!
You need to try and eliminate these factors to reduce the
likelihood of them occurring in your pond. Firstly; limit the
amount of nutrients and sunlight to prevent the algae from
growing. You can do this by providing shade for your pond
by using lilies or by adding plenty of plants to the water, if you
don’t want plants in your pond, try adding them to an external
filter - a vegetable filter using plants such as watercress is
an excellent way of maintaining good water quality - and
!""#$%&'()(*+,-.#/#(.)&01*)-%&'(1#$2%*#("+$()..(3+4$(5)/#$(')$0#&%&'(
you can use it in cooking for soup and salads (as long as no
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chemical treatments have been used in the pond)!
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Don’t give algae the opportunity to grow - Algae is like
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Country Gardener
29
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