Nip Spring Vegetation In The Bud Before It Disrupts Pond Use

Winter offers an opportunity to start next season with a clean vegetation slate.  As water temperatures cool, vegetation goes dormant, plants recede.  Timely implementation of Spring vegetation management procedures can stop growth from repeating past problems.

Pond activity revolves around water temperatures.  During warm months, fish and plant growth peak.  Through cool months, their metabolism diminishes to a snails pace. Don’t wait until July when plants cover half the pond and oxygen levels limit chemical application.  Vegetation must be sprouting new growth to initiate treatment, but quick action prevents plants from extending across the lake.

Early spraying keeps vegetation in-check short-term.  Stocking grass carp can provide long-term maintenance. Grass carp are stocked at 10 to 12-inches.  They potentially eat their weight in vegetation each day, but take approximately one-year to mature and contribute noticeable results.  Visit the Texas Parks and Wildlife website to see if you qualify for grass carp.  If conditions allow, fertilization is another method for managing vegetation. Fertilizer grows plankton near the surface.  Plankton not only adds nutrition for newly-hatched fish, it shades plants and inhibits sunlight from stimulating growth? Whatever plan works best for you, be ready to implement in March as new growth sprouts.  Nipping new growth in the bud reduces future frustration and maintenance costs.