[Lowcountrydave]

What would be a few good options to help get my neighbors pond in check. They've asked me and now I'm asking the more experienced on this subject.

In the head of the pond it has silted in pretty good. So a 1/3 of the pond has an island with some healthy trees growing. We're devising a plan for removal of the silt and trees. But need to find something we can apply to curb the growth in the pond.

Thanks for any info
Dave B.

 

[flyweight]

Neighbor used a product called Airmax Wipe Out on his pond. Cleared it up.

 

[Deere1]

Not sure what part of the country you are in. When I had my farm here in North Texas I tried to get away from the chemical solutions though they do work. Not sure what the size of the pond is from your picture. I ended up getting a permit from the state for grass carp. For my 3 acre pond they recommended 10-12 carp. They were about 10-12" when they were purchased. When I last saw one it was 3.5 feet long. They cleaned up the pond real nice. Does take away some cover that the bait fish and game fish need. You could also use tilapia but they will die out each fall when the water cools. If you are going chemical, 24-d sprayed around the edges will also kill off some of what you have. Before anything I would contact your county agent and see what they recommend for your area. Good luck.

 

[Gizmo2]

I assume it rather shallow. Dig it out to a depth of ~12ft

 

[theduke]

If you search Pond Rakes here you should find a few threads.

Big long boom to hook on fel to rake that crap out.

 

[flyweight]

I found this video.

 

[Jeff is outside]

Ponds are pretty delicate ecosystems. We have one a similar size, a bit deeper, and surrounded by vegetation. Is there anything living in the pond, and what species?

Due to the amount of organic matter, I think this pond could certainly benefit from aeration. You can get aeration pumps relatively cheap, just need a power source. Or you can get aeration through a nice fountain as well (more expensive). Aeration will clear it up by allowing the vegetation to decompose quickly when it enters the pond.

 

[Chief850]

Not sure what part of the country you are in. When I had my farm here in North Texas I tried to get away from the chemical solutions though they do work. Not sure what the size of the pond is from your picture. I ended up getting a permit from the state for grass carp. For my 3 acre pond they recommended 10-12 carp. They were about 10-12" when they were purchased. When I last saw one it was 3.5 feet long. They cleaned up the pond real nice. Does take away some cover that the bait fish and game fish need. You could also use tilapia but they will die out each fall when the water cools. If you are going chemical, 24-d sprayed around the edges will also kill off some of what you have. Before anything I would contact your county agent and see what they recommend for your area. Good luck.

Also, be sure to get the sterile grass carp to keep them in check. They will live about seven years from what I have been told.

 

[Deere1]

Triploid grass carp are sterile. Down here they can live as long as 20 years in some cases.

 

[Old Machinist]

I've used copper sulfate with some success in a small pond. Untreated the stuff comes back.

 

[Hall00]

On the aeration front, I put a small septic aerator and some weighted air hose down to 2 bubblers in my pond. Works well to keep the oxygen levels up and make a decent swimmin hole. I use mine as a retention pond to help with draining my property.

 

[wally2q]

full stop on the chemicals. been there. done that. regretted it.

I had my pond stocked with yellow perch - they dont mind cold or warm water.... the perch minnows eat mosquito larvae. But I had algae issues, and so I used chemicals.... i got rid of the algae..... and also killed the snails, frogs, water beetles... and all the fish. Bad Move!

What I then did is spend $40 at a pet-store, on a bunch of gold-fish and a bunch of feeder-fish which looked just like goldfish, but were smaller... probably the same thing... bu the feeder fish where dirt cheap. Like 50 or so total. Goldfish were 2"+/- long, and the feeder fish wee like 1".
I got a mixture of colors of fish just for fun. Orange, White, Grey... and a bunch of multi color ones.

Well.... they breed.... I have several thousand in there now. Biggest one is maybe 4" long?.... but only a few that size... most of them are 2-3" max, and schools of tiny minnows. They eat all the algae. I have had ZERO algae issues since I put them in. Pond Algae is a non-event for me now. Zero maintenance.

The fish will breed and eat as much as there is food. It's self regulating. I see no dead fish around... I see a blue heron come for lunch once in a while, but it doesn't stay long if our dog happens to be outside. I see a snapping turtle waddle over once in a while.

My pond freezes over from Dec to Apr., but because it's 6' deep, and about 1/4acre in size, and it doesnt freeze all the way to the bottom. So the fish stay low in late fall - in the water - and burrow into the mud and pretty much "hibernate". In the spring, out they come.

All the other frogs and critters get to live, because the fish don't eat them, and I dont use any chemicals any more. The tiny gold fish minnows, when they hatch - eat the mosquito larvae, but I sprinkle the pond with some BTI in the spring and that also helps. Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis.

The pond looks awesome - with the schools of fish roaming around... but it's not overrun.
Been this way for >10yrs now.

Not sure where you are, but even if your pond is shallow, as long as it doesn't freeze solid down to the mud, you'll have no issues with the fish freezing/dying over the winter.

Feeder fish look like this (stock photo - not my pond )

 

[DBCSteve]

A key thing is your neighbor’s long term vision for the pond. All joking aside, deepening to at least 4-5 feet will keep a lot of the vegetation in check. Dig it deeper if he wants better veg control + water storage for irrigation. In our area (western WA) planting fish in a shallow pond — even one 3-4 feet deep — invites in herons for free lunch. As in any work in a wet area (did I say “wetland”? 😁) be cautious about local and state regs.

if the pond is deepened, gotta think through where the spoils will go. Drying in piles and spreading later may be the best approach if your neighbor has the acreage — and it could be spread on the edges of the pond to provide greater effective depth.

 

[rtgt]

if the pond is deepened, gotta think through where the spoils will go.

Another option is there are some outfits that will dig ponds for free. They take the material and sell it.

 

[Lowcountrydave]

There are alot of great ideas! I will share them with my neighbor and see what they want to do.

As always thank you for the information everyone.

Dave B.

 

[Jims6807]

Oldtimer shared this 30+ yrs ago, have had zero growth since with annual application. Label has livestock warning, have not had issues with any pond creatures...fish, frogs, birds, deer, snakes, etc. Now available on Amazon.

 

[DMagers]

jims, that is exactly what I been using, also spike it with some copper sulfate.

 

[Jims6807]

...advantage to copper sulfate....???

 

[ohmanlee]

Dave B.,
We have a property with 4 small ponds, about 5 total acres of water. When my folks passed on 20 years ago, the ponds were choked with weeds of various types. My siblings and I went the chemical route to get the weeds under control, not eliminated. We wanted some vegetation in the ponds to benefit the insects, fish, frogs, etc.

My advice is to check out the PondBoss website. There are contributors on that site that can answer any question you might have. Good luck!