I just found this group. Does any pond owner have experience with
duckweed? I'm in SE PA with about a 1/3 acre pond on my property.
It's spring-fed with a stand pipe for a drain that goes into the city's
storm drain system. It's been choaked with duckweed now for 3 years.
I've tried fish, including the triploid carp that the PA Dept of
Fisheries recommends (forget it!). I'm moving toward a herbicide. Has
anyone used Sonar Q? I wonder how it can kill all the duckweed since
even a few survivors can re-population in a matter of months. Would I
have to do this every spring? Can anyone help?

Thanks,
D

On Wed, 28 Mar 2007 15:57:23 CST, hyperbole
wrote:

I just found this group. Does any pond owner have experience with
duckweed? I'm in SE PA with about a 1/3 acre pond on my property.
It's spring-fed with a stand pipe for a drain that goes into the city's
storm drain system. It's been choaked with duckweed now for 3 years.
I've tried fish, including the triploid carp that the PA Dept of
Fisheries recommends (forget it!). I'm moving toward a herbicide. Has
anyone used Sonar Q? I wonder how it can kill all the duckweed since
even a few survivors can re-population in a matter of months. Would I
have to do this every spring? Can anyone help?

Thanks,
D

I have virtually the same problem with duckweed. I don't know the
answer. If I find one, I'll tell you. I've got three ponds on the
property. The back one was completely clear. I'm pretty sure it got
exposed because ducks would fly there and hide during duck hunting
season,but I never had a problem with duckweed. (I'm right near the
Suwannee River in northern Florida and sometimes it sounds like a
small war zone here during duck season.) Anyway, there used to be
turtles and stuff back there. Then an alligator moved in, and died
shortly thereafter (not in the water). I don't see the turtles anymore
and I have duckweed covering my pond. No, I don't think the turtles
ate the duckweed, but the alligator may have eaten both the turtles
and whatever kept the duckweed in check. It may well have been a mere
coincidence that the alligator and duckweed appeared at the same time,
however the alligator is dead and can't defend itself, therefore I
find it an attractive target. But from what I've read, biological
controls don't seem to be very effective on duckweed. I am very, very
reluctant to use herbicides, but from what I can find Sonar seems
fairly decent as far as those things go.

Yikes!
Duckweed is amazingly resilient for such a tiny little plant.

It's spring-fed with a stand pipe for a drain that goes into the city's
storm drain system.

Since your water can get into the city's storm drain system
I would not do anything unless I have written permission from the
authorities. We usually recommend contacting your county extension
agent for help and permission.

Good luck and let us know what happens.

k :-)

In article ,
Galen Hekhuis wrote:

On Wed, 28 Mar 2007 15:57:23 CST, hyperbole
wrote:

I just found this group. Does any pond owner have experience with
duckweed? I'm in SE PA with about a 1/3 acre pond on my property.
It's spring-fed with a stand pipe for a drain that goes into the city's
storm drain system. It's been choaked with duckweed now for 3 years.
I've tried fish, including the triploid carp that the PA Dept of
Fisheries recommends (forget it!). I'm moving toward a herbicide. Has
anyone used Sonar Q? I wonder how it can kill all the duckweed since
even a few survivors can re-population in a matter of months. Would I
have to do this every spring? Can anyone help?

Thanks,
D

I have virtually the same problem with duckweed. I don't know the
answer. If I find one, I'll tell you. I've got three ponds on the
property. The back one was completely clear. I'm pretty sure it got
exposed because ducks would fly there and hide during duck hunting
season,but I never had a problem with duckweed. (I'm right near the
Suwannee River in northern Florida and sometimes it sounds like a
small war zone here during duck season.) Anyway, there used to be
turtles and stuff back there. Then an alligator moved in, and died
shortly thereafter (not in the water). I don't see the turtles anymore
and I have duckweed covering my pond. No, I don't think the turtles
ate the duckweed, but the alligator may have eaten both the turtles
and whatever kept the duckweed in check. It may well have been a mere
coincidence that the alligator and duckweed appeared at the same time,
however the alligator is dead and can't defend itself, therefore I
find it an attractive target. But from what I've read, biological
controls don't seem to be very effective on duckweed. I am very, very
reluctant to use herbicides, but from what I can find Sonar seems
fairly decent as far as those things go.

Get a big net and periodically scoop it out. Anything that kills it is
going to kill other things.

--
To reply by email, remove the word "space"

Here in MS, triploid grass carp are commonly used to control grennery
in our ponds.. They do the job wonderfully. They eat most green in
their youth and slow up as they age. Two to four per acre seem to do
the job. They get to be HUGE. We have a new 1 acre pond and will be
stocking with blue gills this spring, bass in the fall and grasscarp
in late spring.

Our home pond is 4,000 gal. The koi in the main pond LOVE the
duckweed and eat it like desert whenever it comes down from the berm
ponds.

Jim

On Wed, 28 Mar 2007 22:48:55 CST, Kurt
wrote:

Get a big net and periodically scoop it out. Anything that kills it is
going to kill other things.

That may be the only solution. I've avoided that because in my case
it will involve a boat and many hours (perhaps days) of work. The
re-growth rate is so phenomenal that I fear having to do it
continuously because it doesn't get near cold enough here to kill it.
Sonar seems to only get free floating plants, rooted ones should be
quite safe according to the ads. I don't quite understand why you
would have to wait longer to use Sonar-treated water for irrigation
than for drinking, though. Maybe I read it wrong. Florida seems to
be rather touchy about carp in ponds, and what literature I can find
seems to be rather skeptical about the effectiveness of biological
control. My brother is coming down from NC today for my birthday,
maybe I can get him to call folks for me, there's a UF extension not
far from here that might be able to answer questions. I can't talk
too well anymore or I'd make the phone calls myself. My middle pond
has a big aerator in it, and remains duckweed free. I haven't seen
any ducks there but I have seen plenty of ibises (ibi?) and egrets.
Maybe the aerator's agitation of the water has some inhibitive
quality, I really don't know, but I can't remember seeing any in water
that is moving.
--
Galen Hekhuis
"Mistakes were made"

My friend "The Pond Lady" has many greenhouses full of water lilies, lotus,
etc for sale and also duckweed and azolla. She uses some kind of skimmer
set up to get rid of it because it keeps the ponds too cool and uses up too
much of the fertilzer she needs to grow her plants on. 262-594-3033. ask
her what her set up is. Ingrid


"hyperbole" wrote in message
...
I just found this group. Does any pond owner have experience with
duckweed? I'm in SE PA with about a 1/3 acre pond on my property.
It's spring-fed with a stand pipe for a drain that goes into the city's
storm drain system. It's been choaked with duckweed now for 3 years.
I've tried fish, including the triploid carp that the PA Dept of
Fisheries recommends (forget it!). I'm moving toward a herbicide. Has
anyone used Sonar Q? I wonder how it can kill all the duckweed since
even a few survivors can re-population in a matter of months. Would I
have to do this every spring? Can anyone help?

Thanks,
D