I believe your referring to Barley straw.......the so called cure for
algae.

I find that string algae at least in my area dissapears once water
warms up a bit. Gets darn thick in cooler waters, but by May or June
or so its all gone, and does not reappear until about November.

On Sun, 06 Mar 2005 04:09:10 GMT, Phisherman wrote:

===I can't recall the type, but there is a type of bale straw to put into
===the pond that grows microorganisms that eat the algae. Actually algae
===is a sign of a healthy pond, plus it oxygenates the water. You could
===partly shade the pond or grow lilies. Other plants can compete with
===the algae. We remove algae and excess elodea, adding it to a compost
===pile. In any event, make small gradual changes.
===
===
===On 5 Mar 2005 18:23:03 -0600, Otto Pylot
===wrote:
===
===Howdy all,
===This is our first winter with a new pond. It is about 1100 gallons
===outside in the backyard with about a 4 1/2 foot waterfall that
===meanders down a 6 foot stream. 4 Shibukin goldfish and more mosquito
===fish than I can count. The water moves fairly well 24/7. The only
===thing we treat the pond with is Pond-Zyme Plus about every two weeks.
===We are in the SF Bay Area. There is a lot of string algae that is
===growing and even though we attempt to take it out, it's a losing
===battle. Will the algae go away once the weather warms up and stays warm
===or is there something we should treat the pond with that is safe for
===our current fish and the koi that we plan on adding this spring?
===I'd hate to make my pond chemically dependent if I can help it so what
===should I do or is this a natural cycle that will clear itself over
===time. The fish and plants all look healthy. Thanks.


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