Biological warfare?

I read something here a while ago about plants (Water Lettuce) and Algae
exchanging chemical attacks. Is there anything to this or is it just an old
wives tail? The reason I ask is that my Water Hyacinth is dying off, it's
all turning brown and mushy around the edges. The leaves that are healthy
seem to be a good colour, but the outside leaves and pontoons are all split
and brown. I've been adding trace elements and Potash for a few weeks and I
even added some Nitrates (5 PPM) last week. The roots are constantly covered
in Hair Algae, so I'm wondering if it is having some sort of chemical effect
on the WH. So far the Water Lettuce does not have any Algae on the roots,
but I suspect that's more a matter of duration. It's only been in the pond
for a few days. Salt s/b zero, but I'm tempted to check at this point.

Any WH rejuvenation advice would be appreciated.

TIA

On Tue, 19 Jul 2005 20:36:24 -0400, "Bill Stock" wrote:

I read something here a while ago about plants (Water Lettuce) and Algae
exchanging chemical attacks. Is there anything to this or is it just an old
wives tail? The reason I ask is that my Water Hyacinth is dying off, it's
all turning brown and mushy around the edges. The leaves that are healthy
seem to be a good colour, but the outside leaves and pontoons are all split
and brown.

I've seen WH & WL living in harmony. Now the older pontoons on WH will turn
brown, as long as the center is green, you're doing fine. Are they getting
enough sun is my only question? ~ jan

~Power to the Porg, Flow On!~

I had the same problem and just bought a new batch of WH instead of
playing around.

Bill Stock wrote:
I read something here a while ago about plants (Water Lettuce) and Algae
exchanging chemical attacks. Is there anything to this or is it just an old
wives tail? The reason I ask is that my Water Hyacinth is dying off, it's
all turning brown and mushy around the edges. The leaves that are healthy
seem to be a good colour, but the outside leaves and pontoons are all split
and brown. I've been adding trace elements and Potash for a few weeks and I
even added some Nitrates (5 PPM) last week. The roots are constantly covered
in Hair Algae, so I'm wondering if it is having some sort of chemical effect
on the WH. So far the Water Lettuce does not have any Algae on the roots,
but I suspect that's more a matter of duration. It's only been in the pond
for a few days. Salt s/b zero, but I'm tempted to check at this point.

Any WH rejuvenation advice would be appreciated.

TIA

"Bill Stock" wrote in message
...
I read something here a while ago about plants (Water Lettuce) and Algae
exchanging chemical attacks. Is there anything to this or is it just an
old
wives tail? The reason I ask is that my Water Hyacinth is dying off, it's
all turning brown and mushy around the edges. The leaves that are healthy
seem to be a good colour, but the outside leaves and pontoons are all
split
and brown. I've been adding trace elements and Potash for a few weeks and
I
even added some Nitrates (5 PPM) last week. The roots are constantly
covered
in Hair Algae, so I'm wondering if it is having some sort of chemical
effect
on the WH. So far the Water Lettuce does not have any Algae on the roots,
but I suspect that's more a matter of duration. It's only been in the pond
for a few days. Salt s/b zero, but I'm tempted to check at this point.

Any WH rejuvenation advice would be appreciated.
=====================
It sounds like they may have some kind of bacterial rot disease. They may
not be worth trying to save. The problem is if it is a disease it will
quickly infect any new WH you purchase and add to the same pond.
--
McKoi.... the frugal ponder...
EVERYONE: "Please check people's headers for forgeries
before flushing." NAMES ARE BEING FORGED.
My Pond Page http://tinyurl.com/cuq5b
~~~ }((((o ~~~ }{{{{o ~~~ }(((((o

"Bill Stock" wrote in message
...
I read something here a while ago about plants (Water Lettuce) and Algae
exchanging chemical attacks. Is there anything to this or is it just an old
wives tail? The reason I ask is that my Water Hyacinth is dying off, it's
all turning brown and mushy around the edges. The leaves that are healthy
seem to be a good colour, but the outside leaves and pontoons are all split
and brown. I've been adding trace elements and Potash for a few weeks and I
even added some Nitrates (5 PPM) last week. The roots are constantly
covered in Hair Algae, so I'm wondering if it is having some sort of
chemical effect on the WH. So far the Water Lettuce does not have any Algae
on the roots, but I suspect that's more a matter of duration. It's only
been in the pond for a few days. Salt s/b zero, but I'm tempted to check at
this point.

Any WH rejuvenation advice would be appreciated.

TIA




This sounds like normal behavior for water hyacinth. The older outside parts
of the plant will go soft and brown. I've always just removed those parts
and the rest of the plant has always grown (and multiplied exponentially)
and thrived. At least this has always been the way mine have behaved.

joe

"JoeT" noway@today wrote in message
...
This sounds like normal behavior for water hyacinth. The older outside
parts
of the plant will go soft and brown. I've always just removed those parts
and the rest of the plant has always grown (and multiplied exponentially)
and thrived. At least this has always been the way mine have behaved.
================
That doesn't happen to my WH until the cold days of fall start. They stay
mostly green and healthy looking all summer. They are removed to the
compost heap when they start to look sickly in the fall.

Maybe a difference in water or climate... ???!?!?!?!
--
McKoi.... the frugal ponder...
EVERYONE: "Please check people's headers for forgeries
before flushing." NAMES ARE BEING FORGED.
My Pond Page http://tinyurl.com/cuq5b
~~~ }((((o ~~~ }{{{{o ~~~ }(((((o

"Bill Stock" wrote in message
...
I read something here a while ago about plants (Water Lettuce) and Algae
exchanging chemical attacks. Is there anything to this or is it just an old
wives tail? The reason I ask is that my Water Hyacinth is dying off, it's
all turning brown and mushy around the edges. The leaves that are healthy
seem to be a good colour, but the outside leaves and pontoons are all split
and brown. I've been adding trace elements and Potash for a few weeks and I
even added some Nitrates (5 PPM) last week. The roots are constantly
covered in Hair Algae, so I'm wondering if it is having some sort of
chemical effect on the WH. So far the Water Lettuce does not have any Algae
on the roots, but I suspect that's more a matter of duration. It's only
been in the pond for a few days. Salt s/b zero, but I'm tempted to check at
this point.

Any WH rejuvenation advice would be appreciated.

TIA


Thanks for all the suggestions. I should have mentioned that they are not
producing offspring, i.e.. they cover less area now than they did a few
weeks ago. They seem to have stabilized a bit since I added the Nitrates,
I'll see how they are doing on the weekend. The Nitrates are still around 5
PPM, which is a little surprising as I added 5+ on Sunday. I would have
thought the Algae would have taken off and consumed all the Nitrates, but
it's only marginally worse than it was. Although it has started to produce
gas (bubbles). The Lilies are just taking off though, they must cover 25% of
the pond from their two little pots.

The WH are getting lots of sun (over 30° C) most days and probably 8 hours
of direct sun. I may try a Miracle Grow bath as a last resort and then toss
them as RM and CB suggested, if they don't recover.