I spend my weekends wading in my pond trying to brush away the string algae off the rocks and pond lilies. We do use a chemical, and it does help. Before we started using it, we spent every day using a pole with a toilet brush at the end of it, winding the algae around it and pulling it out like a lot of 3-foot-long green spaghetti.

How much string algae should a pond have? I would really like to be able to see the rocks.

Our fish our healthy. We have a new turtle that doesn't seem to be doing much, and many, many mosquito fish.

Any advice will be appreciated and treasured for all eternity.

Thank you

As far as I know there's not much more you can do about the string. Maybe increase your surface shade ( more floating plants ). At least the algae makes good free fertilizer. :D

I agree

Hair algae should be minimal with most of it occuring from winter to early spring. Hair or string algae likes colder water and will grow well in cold water before other algae and plants get going.

As with other algae, you will want good filtration and aeration, good bacteria, some shade, and lots of plants to compete with the algae. Do you have a UV sterilizer? If you do, that can actually make hair algae worse because it kills the suspended algae which may compete with hair algae. I don't have a UV sterilizer, and I don't have suspended algae. I do have some hair algae but not a lot. I have lots of plants. Manual removal of hair algae is easiest. There are chemicals that say they kill it but I'm not a big fan of adding chemicals.

My algae page at http://www.fishpondinfo.com/plants/algae2.htm has some other ideas.

How big is your pond? How old is it? If it's smaller or new, then algae problems are to be expected. Things should improve as the pond ages. Also, turtles are messy so ponds with them tend to have more algae.

Good luck!

i to am on the algae mission I scimmed the bottom today and pulled three nets full out which is good cuz it has detached from the sides. This is my first spring and first time with this I added 10 water hyasinths (sp) lol and 10 fake loating flowers to create more shade and the live plants to take away the algae I will post in a couple weeks and see if that helps i do use liquid barley but Robyn said this is the time colder water no other plants

well not anymore hahahahha the nursery had their pond plants in today I will win this I WILL WiN :ph43r:

......ok I feel better now

C2 :D

I decided I am not going to fret the algae all that much. It's pee green and it's bound to stay that way forever. It bothers me A LOT, but......the fish like it so who am I to argue :lol: . I refuse to put anything in my pond but the dechlorinator I need sometimes. I am going to try for some kind of pergola covering and of course add more plants when the weather permits. With my volume I don't know if it would even be possible to get it crystal clear. Plus, it is going to take forever for my new filter system to start working. My fish are so healthy that that is all that matters to me. After them pulling through the winter and being so healthy and vibrant, I am reluctant to change a thing in there. I have been shopping up a storm and got some great pond additions, floaters, solar lights, nick nacks and a fabulous huge Canada Goose which I got as an early Bday present. I also picked up two blue shubunkins, but they are quarantined in the house for now!

My water is quite soupy at the moment too, but not much I can do until my plants kick in. It is still early. :D

I have a blue Shuboken KK, and they are nice, but darn hard to see! My calico ones are a lot easier to spot since they both have bright orange heads.

My water was pretty clear until this last rain...Friday the UV DOES go in ..for sure. The water lettuce I got from Ebay is just starting to get nice long healthy roots but still has a way to go for coverage. I want to move the pond over and put up a pergola...but DH likes the tree coverage. The ONLY tree that's close to the pond. First it drops pod husks, then flower petals, then seed heads, then leaves. Something for every season. :angry: But it is a beautiful tree in full color. <_<

Before I left town on vacation I stoppped at the local garden center for Mosiquto dunks and found they just received their first shipment of tropical water plants that day. So I purchased water lettice that looked like it was grown on steroids. Long like 10 inches shaped like a Romaine head well it went in the pond but would not stand up looks pretty funny. It will be interesting to see how it turns out :huh:

Fm3

SadieMay, what species of tree is it by your pond?

FM3 I have the same problem with the lettuce so I go with the hyasnths (sp) how do you spell that good lord) anyways they seem to stay pretty longer maybe i just suck at raising it
C2

Hyacinths

It's a saucer magnolia, but instead of being cone shaped I pruned it to canopy over us and the pond and a garden area. It's smack-dab in the middle of my yard. :angry: I'd love to move it to the side but can't risk killing it. My nieghbors gave it to my dad when my grandmother died ( instead of a Mass Card, they went with a tree ) and my mom wanted to see it out the kitchen window. It's first big bloom has always been within the week she died...which is kinda spooky. :(