Containing the aquatic plants in a pond, or in any body of water is quite important. Why you ask? Well, because for whatever reason, you’ve decided that you do not want it to be there. No matter if those plants have create a sort of hindrance for swimmers, or have have simply stopped up the engine on your favorite boat, you wish them to be gone, and there are several ways to do this.
Naturally you can utilize chemical substances, plastic lining, freezing, manual pulling, or even dye, however all of those are mighty inconvenient, and there is no promise that your pond, or even the fish, would ever be anywhere near what it was after such an effort. Therefore it’s time to look into different methods—techniques which won’t damage you OR the pond.
In 1963, a brand new fish was introduced in to the United States ecology, and this fish was called the Grass Carp. It was purposefully integrated into our ecosystem for one reason of eliminating aquatic plants, and so far it has done a great job. Here in the United States, the Grass Carp is commonly referred to as a White Amur, probably because of the fact that the word Carp holds negative meanings here in the United States., and the word “Amur” refers to the river that the fish originates from, a river that runs the border between China and Russia.
The Grass Carp, is what’s known as an invasive species, indicating that it will reproduce and overtake any ecosystem that it is introduced in (sort of like humans), but fortunately science has progressed far, and while it took a lot of time, as well as a lot of gene manipulation, sterilizing a Grass Carp became standard everywhere in the world so that the integration doesn’t hurt or eradicate the local ecology.
Another thing to take into account, is that the Grass Carp does not consume everything, naturally it enjoys plants, and will eat the vast majority of it, however as with human being, there’s things which it prefers over others. A few of the things which the Grass Carp will like, are:
Coontail
Spikerush
Smartweed
Bladderwort
Bulrush
Water hyssop
Eelgrass
There’s several others, and a quick trip to a library, a web query, or a consultation with an expert will quickly reveal the things a grass carp will consume.
When purchased in bulk, Grass Carp is fairly inexpensive, ranging from about $10-20 for each fish, which is very reasonable when you consider how long it’ll last; surviving for about ten to eleven years.
In certain states, you will be required to acquire a license before you place Grass Carp in any sort of water, even if it is owned by you. To discover if that’s necessary, talk to a game warden near you, or just examine the laws of your state, since that information is readily available to any person that needs it.
As you can see, Grass Carp are a great alternate means to utilizing chemical compounds, or lining your pond with plastic, since not just are they perfect for ridding you of undesired plant life, you must additionally remember that it’s an interdependent relationship, you give something that they desire, and in return they give a service to you, preventing you from having to do this yourself. All in all, this is a good exchange.