If you have an algae problem in your pond, then this article is for you. We will discuss various ways to eliminate the algae and restore your pond back to its original beauty. These methods are easy and do not require any special equipment or knowledge of chemistry!
Filamentous algae in the pond? Congratulations, the garden pond is healthy, the water quality is good. The algae just must not get out of hand.
Two types of algae are interesting for the garden pond, filamentous algae, and floating algae.
Algae are a symptom, they appear when the conditions are present. In healthy water algae naturally appear and disappear.
A garden pond is a closed system due to the use of a pond liner. The water balance is partially deprived of its ability to clean itself. It is up to us to provide for an approximately natural balance. Therefore, a pond owner must also deal with algae.
Lake rakes are a quick and easy way to clean algae from the pond.
Sometimes algae get out of hand and the pond is overloaded. Then it must be urgently helped to restore the balance. Considerations must be made to avoid an imbalance in the future.
On these pages, we give an overview of causes and remedies as well as immediate and emergency measures for algae blooms and filamentous algae.
When you have a garden pond, it should be perfectly balanced. If the balance is lost because there are too many algae in your pond, this can cause problems. Pond owners need to know how to get rid of algae and prevent future growths from ruining their water gardens! In this article, we will discuss how you can deal with an imbalance
The algae species
There are tens of thousands of algae species (estimates go up to 1 million), from microscopic to 197ft long.
When it comes to garden ponds, we usually talk about floating algae and filamentous algae.
Very often one also hears the term green algae. Colloquially, this often refers to floating algae, although filamentous algae also belong to the green algae.
There is nobody of water without algae, if only because algae are in the fine dust.
Algae are a natural and important component in any body of water. In excess, they can bring a garden pond or mini pond permanently out of balance.
Suspended algae
If the water is green, floating algae are responsible. They are microscopically small and cannot be seen with the naked eye. Only the huge number of them makes them visible as a green veil.
If one speaks of algae bloom then floating algae are meant which multiply explosively. The water then appears cloudy and green. In extreme cases, you cannot look deeper than a few centimeters into the water.
Suspended algae like to use the typical spring gap, i.e. the time before microorganisms and water plants become active after the winter. During this time the nutrient supply in the water is particularly high. After 2 to 3 weeks a typical algae bloom is over.
However, this does not mean that it has passed without harm. During this time organic material has formed which now lies at the bottom and rots under oxygen consumption and forms the so-called mulm.
Better the algae bloom does not appear in the garden pond, because that also always means a burden like organic residues. During the pond season, you have time to prepare to prevent the algae bloom in the garden pond for the coming year. After the algae bloom is before the algae bloom.
If the algae bloom does not disappear after 2 to 3 weeks, it is urgently recommended to do something. To get the algae to bloom under control, there are now good and effective ways. Also, preventive measures can be taken.
If floating algae die off, they form a mulm, a sludge layer, the best basis for the next algae growth. If you fight floating algae with methods that are based on killing the floating algae (e.g. unsuitable filter systems), you will have clear water again, but still nutrients in the water.
Filamentous algae
Filamentous algae (also called wire algae) start very small and grow several meters long. Filamentous algae can suffocate an entire pond if there is enough sun and nutrients. When they die, thick layers of mulm form at the bottom of the pond. During the decomposition process, they consume a lot of oxygen and release nutrients.
During growth, filamentous algae remove nutrients from the water and are great oxygen providers. Filamentous algae provide a home for many small creatures such as tadpoles, beetle, and dragonfly larvae. Filamentous algae are valuable aquatic plants, it’s just a matter of keeping a close eye on them, constantly reducing them to a reasonable level, and preventing them from dying and sinking.
There are reasons to remove filamentous algae completely from the garden pond, especially Koi lovers who want this.
With appropriate water quality, regular care, and a few aids, thread algae can be kept at a level that is very good for the garden pond and the small organisms.
Filamentous algae are excellent for compost. Those who have a worm farm will appreciate filamentous algae as food.
Filamentous algae cleverly exploit the gap in the spring.
Algae slime, algae foam
In many forums and conversations, the term algae slime and algae foam is often mentioned. Sometimes slimy deposits on the stones are meant, sometimes algae foam floating on the surface.
Algal scum is filamentous algae that have risen from the bottom of the pond because of attached oxygen bubbles. Algal slime often refers to the deposition of small filamentous algae and other algae on the stones or pond liner.
Are algae good or harmful?
Algae are first of all very useful plants for the garden pond, they extract nutrients from the water and provide oxygen. No plant and no technique is as effective as the algae.
On the opposite side for the pond owner, the algae withdraw at night from the water exactly as much oxygen as they give during the day over the water. If you have a lot of algae in your pond, you will have strong oxygen fluctuations between day and night. This can go so far at night that it becomes dangerous for the fish.
It s also dangerous for the garden pond when the algae die. Then they sink to the bottom, release nutrients into the water, and consume a lot of oxygen during the decay process. Mulm (pond sludge) is formed which then serves as a nursery for the next generation of algae. The garden pond silts up over time.
To build up the biomass, the filamentous algae need carbon, which they first take from dissolved carbon dioxide and carbonic acid. If this source is used up, they “crack” the carbonate hardness, and thus the pH and other values can become unbalanced. The pond system starts to falter.
In addition, algae are often undesirable for optical reasons.
Algae are useful water plants to a certain extent, which is different for each pond.
But algae can quickly become a danger. Keeping algae under control is one of the most important tasks of a pond owner.