Blanket weed – there isn’t a one dose treatment – yet! By Andy McConnachie from Aqua Landscape Design

Eco Pond Treatments

The number of treatments available to the aquatic market nowadays is exhaustive, it can be overwhelming to walk into an aquatic shop and find the correct remedy to assist you with your problem. Most treatments are chemical based, however there are an increasing number of natural remedies now available.

Water Treatments

Blanket weed has long been the bane of many a pond keeper and there isn’t a one dose treatment that will cure a pond permanently... yet. Therefore repeated treatments are required and with concern growing for the long term use of manmade chemicals there have been an increasing number of natural remedies such as Barley Straw. When Barley straw starts to rot, it releases humic acid and enzymes into the water thus
helping to prevent algae like blanket weed and green water from growing. It can be difficult to get the pouches to rot aerobically in still, natural ponds and can take up to 28 days before they start to work. Barley straw extract is a ready to use product which gets to work instantly.

Montmorillonite clays have long been used in Japan as natural water purifies and fish health tonics. They work by ion exchange, absorbing harmful toxins and flocculating tiny particulates, such as algae. This significantly enhances water clarity and quality, whilst also replenishing natural beneficial minerals. For fish; the clay also works by aiding digestion, absorbing harmful toxins internally and improving skin health
and colour. Water clarity problems can be caused by detritus build up on the bottom of ponds which can be stirred up by fish or water movement. Reducing the amount of waste can be done by adding a natural booster which will speed the decomposition of waste by using a special blend of selected pond bacteria.

Fish Treatments

There are several herbal remedies available to treat fish ailments and although they are a little more expensive than chemical treatments, they can be more effective due to the pathogens not having built up resilience to the treatments and most of them do not affect the biological balance of beneficial filter bacteria. Bacterial treatments, for fin rot, mouth rot, ulcers and fungus work by enhancing the immune system against such pathogens rather than killing the bacteria itself. Therefore it is harmless to the good bacteria which is essential to a pond's ecosystem and also speeds up the healing process. Parasitic treatments for ailments like white spot, also work naturally by promoting the fishes own defences both externally and internally.

Open wounds and ulcers can be easily treated using Propolis; a natural product produced by bees. It is used to seal the hive and to prevent disease and parasites. In fish, it can be used to form a waterproof, antibacterial seal over wounds and promotes the healthy regeneration of tissue. It can also be added to food to strengthen the immune system.