got my algae bloom

2 week old pond, I was waiting for it and the other day I woke up and
sure enough, it was green and murky. DOH!

Can I get some opinions on whether my pond sounds like it has the right
mix of stuff so that hopefully this will clear soon?

~120 gallons, 3' x 3' x 2' box.

Plants:

(2) Dwarf Horsetail Rush, about 6" tall planted in gravel on a shelf.
Some browing on the tips concerns me.

(2) Louisiana Iris, potted, wrapped in landscape fabric with gravel on
top, 3" under water surface. These guys haven't done much, and one of
them has a browning droopy stalk. I hope they make it...

(8) Water hyacinth, purchased 4 of them about 10 days ago. They are
reproducing, but have many brown spots and don't look very healthy.
I've had to pull several rotten pods off of them. On the plus side
their roots have really grown.

(1) small water lilly, potted and placed about 10" down. Seems to be
doing quite well, but it's only been in there 3 days.

(4) anacharis, doing great. Going to go purchase some more tonight.

Fish:

(3) small goldfish, 2-3" long

Pump:

200 gph, inside one of those canister filters with 4 pads (2 sizes) and
about 8 bio-balls.

The pond gets full sunlight, probably 10+ hours a day right now. I've
put an umbrella over it for today, but I'm not sure if that's going to
hurt my plants as well as the algae.

I'm a bit concerned that the iris, rush and hyacinth don't look so hot.
Anything I can do to help them? I'm wondering if maybe they're not
doing well and not using up the nutrients, allowing the algae to
flourish.

Anything that will help the pond clear sooner? We're having a big party
next weekend, I know it's not going to be crystal clear by then, but
maybe something can help it clear up a bit...

First, for the long haul, higher order plants need nitrogen, phosphorous,
and potassium. Algae thrives on just the first two. Adding potash, 0,0,60
fertilizer will help the higher order plants compete for the nutrients
better, thereby starving the algae. The green water may last a month or
more, before it has consumed all the nutrients, gotten into balance and
cleared.

A UV sterilizer will kill the algae and clear the pond much quicker, but
does nothing for reducing the nutrients.

For a party, and only when someone is going to have a party and wants
immediate clear water, you can use an algaecide, but as soon as the dead
algae starts to decompose, it will release the nutrients and you will be
back to green water for at least as long as you would have been if you had
not used the algaecide.
--
RichToyBox
http://www.geocities.com/richtoybox/pondintro.html

wrote in message
oups.com...

2 week old pond, I was waiting for it and the other day I woke up and
sure enough, it was green and murky. DOH!

Can I get some opinions on whether my pond sounds like it has the right
mix of stuff so that hopefully this will clear soon?

~120 gallons, 3' x 3' x 2' box.

Plants:

(2) Dwarf Horsetail Rush, about 6" tall planted in gravel on a shelf.
Some browing on the tips concerns me.

(2) Louisiana Iris, potted, wrapped in landscape fabric with gravel on
top, 3" under water surface. These guys haven't done much, and one of
them has a browning droopy stalk. I hope they make it...

(8) Water hyacinth, purchased 4 of them about 10 days ago. They are
reproducing, but have many brown spots and don't look very healthy.
I've had to pull several rotten pods off of them. On the plus side
their roots have really grown.

(1) small water lilly, potted and placed about 10" down. Seems to be
doing quite well, but it's only been in there 3 days.

(4) anacharis, doing great. Going to go purchase some more tonight.

Fish:

(3) small goldfish, 2-3" long

Pump:

200 gph, inside one of those canister filters with 4 pads (2 sizes) and
about 8 bio-balls.

The pond gets full sunlight, probably 10+ hours a day right now. I've
put an umbrella over it for today, but I'm not sure if that's going to
hurt my plants as well as the algae.

I'm a bit concerned that the iris, rush and hyacinth don't look so hot.
Anything I can do to help them? I'm wondering if maybe they're not
doing well and not using up the nutrients, allowing the algae to
flourish.

Anything that will help the pond clear sooner? We're having a big party
next weekend, I know it's not going to be crystal clear by then, but
maybe something can help it clear up a bit...

On 24 Jun 2005 07:51:41 -0700, wrote:

2 week old pond
~120 gallons, 3' x 3' x 2' box.
(2) Dwarf Horsetail Rush
(2) Louisiana Iris
(8) Water hyacinth
(1) small water lilly
(4) anacharis, doing great.
(3) small goldfish, 2-3" long
pump - 200 gph, inside one of those canister filters with 4 pads (2 sizes) and
about 8 bio-balls.

The pond gets full sunlight, probably 10+ hours

Water quality parameters would actually tell us more. But with the
information above, I'd say your cycle is right on schedule. ;o) So now you
need patience, unless your water quality is really out of balance, like a
really high pH or low KH.

The umbrella will actually help the higher plant forms as they are
currently suffering transplant shock. The iris will be the slowest to
recover, it may look sickly right up to fall, but come back with a
vengeance next spring. The most forgiving plant (I've got this stuck IN my
cement blocks around the lily pond and it thriving) is water cress, luckily
it is cheap too. ~ jan


See my ponds and filter design:
www.jjspond.us

~Keep 'em Wet!~
Tri-Cities WA Zone 7a
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