Don’t Do This When Winterizing Your Small Pond

For the water garden or small pond owner, plants, meaning desirable plants can be a very good thing. They’re natural of course, and along with adding a natural appearance to a pond, they also do a lot of other good things. If you want to ward off algae, certain plants like lilies or hyacinths can … Read more

Don’t Treat Weed Problems In Late Summer And Fall

There’s a question I get at this time of year which comes up often enough for me to want to address it here. And that is, “What should I treat duckweed, or other pond weeds with as we come into late summer and fall?”

It’s a reasonable question and one that deserves an honest and reasonable answer, which is…

Nothing at all.

I suggest to all of our clients that late season duckweed or weed problems are unfortunate but mid to late summer, or fall, is not the time to treat them. Particularly as the seasons get cooler, many of these aquatic weeds will go away all on their own. So a bit of patience can save you a lot of money if you’re smart about it.

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Pond Shading Options For Limiting Green Water Algae

I have to admit, sunny days make me happier.

But everything comes with a price they say, and sometimes the price you pay for ample sunlight is pond algae.

In the case of green water, which is caused by numerous single cell algae, the sun can play a major role in it’s growth.

After visiting with many pond owners over the years, when we get calls about green water, one of the common questions we’ll ask is, “does the pond get a lot of sun exposure?” The inevitable answer is almost always, “yes”. Other pond owners that had several ponds were often quick to point out that the ponds in some shade, were often clearer, and the pond’s in the sun were quite green.

Now don’t get me wrong, you want your pond to be exposed to a bit of sun…that’s just a good thing for desirable plants and your fish too, but too much of a good thing can often cause some problems.

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Dividing Water Lilies

Water lilies have become one of the most popular pond plants for small pond owners and for good reason. They’re beautiful and functional in the sense that they provide shade for ponds that get a lot of sun (and we know how that can help with green water algae right?) and provide protection for your … Read more

Fall And Winter Pond Plant Care

One of our loyal readers kindly reminded me that I failed to mention anything about pond plants as we get into fall and winter. My apologies!!! Keep in mind though that in most cases throughout the summer, my main mission is to keep a particular plant out of the picture…but we’re not talking about pond … Read more