"KMartin" wrote in message
...
what does potash and epsom salts do for a pond, plants, fish? I've seen
that remark about potash in a couple of spots, and 1)what is it and what
does it do? and 2)where do you get it? and 3) is it ok with fish and
plants?

thanks, kym

Hi, Kym--

Muriate of Potash is a granular fertilizer that many of us use in our ponds.
I got mine at a regular old garden center; it was a 5 lb. bag for about 4
bucks. It will last me for years and years. The potash, when added to your
pond, provides food for the higher order floating plants, thus allowing them
to compete with the lower order plants (algae) and starve them out. It does
that very nicely, in my experience, and greens up any water lettuce, water
hyacinth, etc. that you have. I use a heaping teaspoon mixed with a quart
of pond water for my 750 gal. pond about every two weeks or so. My 4 water
lettuce plants have gone crazy shooting out "pups" and I now have nice 40%
coverage on my pond surface. The standard dosage is 1 Tbsp. per thousand
gallons about every two weeks, I think. I have 4 fish, and the muriate of
potash does no harm to them.

NJ