How to Remove Plants from Pond?
 

My 6m x 4m, 50cm-deep butyl-lined pond was constructed four years ago. Its
a wildlife pond with no fish and no pump or filter.

The water lilies and rush are getting too large so I need to remove them;
they are mostly in baskets. But I cannot pick up the baskets cos the roots
have grown over the edge of the basket and spread across the pebble-strewn
bottom. So all the baskets and the bottom stones are all joined together.

Whats the best way of getting them up; and not involving slashing away with
a knife near the lining?!

thanks

DAvy

How to Remove Plants from Pond?
 

Most of us have bare pond bottoms to avoid muck in the pebbles. Can
you lift your plants with the pebbles attached?

Jim

How to Remove Plants from Pond?
 

Phyllis and Jim wrote in news:07c25fb1-d1b6-
:

Most of us have bare pond bottoms to avoid muck in the pebbles. Can
you lift your plants with the pebbles attached?

Jim


Jim, the problem is I cannot lift the baskets cos they are all joined
together and so the weight is enormous. Also as soon as I get in the pond
the silt is stirred up and so I am working blind with a blade!

I think I will have to pump the pond out so I can see what I am doing.

Davy

How to Remove Plants from Pond?
 

On Sun, 8 Aug 2010 14:58:59 EDT, David Stokes wrote:

The water lilies and rush are getting too large so I need to remove them;

Do you actually need to remove them? Why not just "prune" the
excessive growth.

Steve

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How to Remove Plants from Pond?
 

On Mon, 9 Aug 2010 07:13:01 EDT, David Stokes wrote:


Jim, the problem is I cannot lift the baskets cos they are all joined
together and so the weight is enormous. Also as soon as I get in the pond
the silt is stirred up and so I am working blind with a blade!

I think I will have to pump the pond out so I can see what I am doing.

Davy

I agree with draining, sounds like it is due for a good clean out anyway.
~ jan
------------
Zone 7a, SE Washington State
Ponds: www.jjspond.us

How to Remove Plants from Pond?
 

Stephen Wolstenholme wrote in
:

On Sun, 8 Aug 2010 14:58:59 EDT, David Stokes wrote:

The water lilies and rush are getting too large so I need to remove
them;

Do you actually need to remove them? Why not just "prune" the
excessive growth.

Steve


The waterlilies are producing fewer flowers each year and too much foliage
for the size of the pond. So I had in mind to bring up their baskets and
then chop up the rhizomes - replanting only the younger growths. Does that
sound right?

DAvy

How to Remove Plants from Pond?
 

On Tue, 10 Aug 2010 19:02:04 EDT, David Stokes wrote:

The waterlilies are producing fewer flowers each year and too much foliage
for the size of the pond. So I had in mind to bring up their baskets and
then chop up the rhizomes - replanting only the younger growths. Does that
sound right?

DAvy

Yes, replant the growing ends at the far side of the basket, as it will
grow across the basket. I put 2 ends in each of my baskets that are
14"X18", some take 2 years to grow across, others need repotting every
year. Depending on your basket size, you might be able to get more ends in.
~ jan
------------
Zone 7a, SE Washington State
Ponds: www.jjspond.us

It's a feature of aquatic plants, they do have the evolutionary habit of meshing together with the intention of staying put where they like.

Perhaps that's how many species came to survive floods, storms and torrents in the wild...

Sumo wrestlers, excavating equipment, machetes can have a hard time cutting hacking or pulling on that titanic mass, for sure

One thing you have going for you, it's a lined pond, making it a monster mass kinda sorta under control

Draining the pond completely and allowing it to get close to drying out will make like easier, when the bulk of the water is gone, the titanic carpet may lift in sections a lot easier, like a rug, unless, you let loose a huge amount of stone, dirt and pebbles

When close to dry, rip the pots out first, then you can roll the meshed loose plants out easy. With the bulk of the water gone, the mass will be a lot lighter to lift

Take care when taking a grip on the mass, if there are dragonfly larvae a bit uppity among it, they can and will deliver a severe bite

Regards, andy
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