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I own a small par 3 golf
course in Delavan, Wi. and have a small retention pond that
I can fill with a well or rainwater. The retention pond feeds
my watering system on the course. It fills with algae and
is located right next to my parking lot and becomes a eyesore.
Keeping in mind that I water the course with this water, is
there anything I can do to kill the algae??? This time of
year I have considered putting weed killer in the water and
water the course for the broadleaf weeds. Just kidding. Any
help would be appreciated. Thanks, Mark.
Dear Mark,
Mike Nowak sent your question on to me,
since I seem to be the quickest "on the draw" of his ponding
friends.
Retention ponds and other "borrow pits"
are a common source of eye hickeys. Their relative shallowness
and frequent exposure to full sun make them prone to heavy
plant growth, especially the stuff that looks and smells bad.
Swimming birds are attracted to the water, and they bring
in their own nitrogenous wastes, along with wild fish eggs
which cling to their legs.
Hair algae will grow rapidly in any relatively
fresh water system, and if unchecked, can choke out any other
life in it.
What you do about this will depend on how
much effort (and money!)you want to expend on keeping the
area handsome and useful.
Ideally, the best pure ponding solution
would be to try to improve the water quality in this retention
area to the point where it could support a population of omnivorous
wild fish and other critters that would mimic a lake habitat.
Failing a continuous stream or spring-fed source, your next
best bet is bottom aeration.
Aquatic Ecosystems has a neat website with
pictures of these systems, and they are easily built. Air
released at the bottom of the pond will not only eliminate
the anaerobic conditions there (along with that "rotten egg"
odor) but will circulate the water and make it less prone
to fouling. Once the water is moving, the hair algae can be
dealt with. A system with a central spray fountain might even
be kinda pretty...
The most effective and safest solution
for hair algae has been barley straw, now sold widely in small
bales, which are simply tossed into a pond where moving water
can circulate around them. They encourage the growth of a
mix of microorganisms that inhibit the hair algae. The only
drawback to this method for a recreational water gardener
is the slight brown tinge the straw gives to the water. This
should not bother you at all. A number of manufacturers are
now producing Barley Straw extracts and derivitives that claim
to control the algae without the color problem, but the more
they process, the more expensive the product.
Chemical additives are not a good idea.
The water dyes are ineffective and look fake and tacky. Herbicides
are dangerous to fish and wildlife, and will get you into
endless trouble with the Wisconsin EPA, which is not widely
known for their sense of humor. What's worse, no algaecide
yet invented will take out hair algae and leave the water
safe or useable for anything else.
Try the circulation and barley straw trick.
I think it'll work for you.
Regards,
Bob Passovoy
President
Midwest Pond and Koi Society
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