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moss in pond

Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2012 11:34 am
by amanda
I think i posted about this a while back, anyway this moss is getting out of control now i have been in the pond getting handfuls of the stuff out it is very course and is pretty well cemented to the pond liner.
the trouble with it is it catches all the crap etc and looks a mess blanket weed is also hitching a ride on it. :x
It would be fine if it stayed really short but its growing like mad, has any one else had this problem? i have only seen moss growing in tropical fish tanks before.
is this going to be a challenge to remove? :?:

Re: moss in pond

Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2012 7:07 pm
by Manky Sanke
Amanda,

If this is growing underwater it isn't moss, from your description, it sounds like one of the cladophora species of algae. Does it look like this or similar? There are a few different strains, all similar but slightly different (if that makes sense :? ).
Algae cladophora socialis.jpg
Algae cladophora socialis.jpg (205.7 KiB) Viewed 1485 times
If it is, then it can be killed by an algae killer such as Cloverleaf or Eco gold. I never need to use algae treatments so I can't speak from first hand experience but most of those who use Cloverleaf, recommend only using it at half the dose rate so that it doesn't knock back the biofilter.

This makes sense because the way it kills algae is by making holes in the cell walls which are made of something called polysaccharide. This is similar to the stuff that makes the cell walls of bugs so I'm sure it has some effect on biofilters. The manufacturers swear it doesn't harm the bugs in biofilters but a few koi keepers tell of their biofilter being killed after using one full dose.

No-one seems to suffer this problem when it's used at half dose. I think most other algae treatments work on similar lines but its hard to get the manufacturers to give any information.

Re: moss in pond

Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2012 9:50 pm
by amanda
definately not any form of blanket weed i have seen before, it is fern like and grows along rather than up. it is roughly 2 to 3"
in height and very dark green i stripped a load off today its a bit like picking grass it has a very course texture.
i will try to download a photo later.