by Bee Harris, PWLCTMN Member
My husband and I sat at a table with a couple named Judy and Joel. We were attending a pond management class.
Husband Joel said, “We bought our property 29 years ago. It came with a 1/3-acre pond. If I’d known then, what I know now I would have never bought the place.” Shaking his head, he continued. “You see, the seller didn’t know how to install a proper pond. I’ve been working on and repairing his mistakes for years. We’ve increased the pond to 3 acres, but we still aren’t finished fixing it.”
“The number one complaint from pond owners is nutrient/vegetation management,” said speaker, Phillip Spearman (owner of Aquatech Unlimited). “Pond owners fed up with algae kill it. That creates muck, which makes phosphorus, which feeds new algae, which makes it worse and worse. It’s a cycle.”
I learned that there are many ways to manage pond vegetation: biological —takes time, chemical —brings an immediate change, aeration —must happen on surface and below, fountains —only enables some oxygen transfer, and diffused aeration —efficient with deeper and larger waters. A pond that has a proper amount of naturally dissolved oxygen doesn’t need aeration. What’s not good enough? Wind and solar.
Spearman said a healthy pond contains good layers of dissolved oxygen. Pond odors are reduced, and fish health and water clarity increase when aeration is done properly.
Getting a good plan for pond management may include:
- Wetland plants that will filter any water running into the pond
- Pond placement —a pond or lake draws snakes and other critters
- A quality pond liner, if your clay is porous
- Erosion control measures
- Bermuda for levee
- Dam repair plans
- Specific pond vegetation
- Specifics for good aeration
- A good pond design
A poor pond design:
- Undesirable location where polluted runoff dumps into pond
- Size of pond doesn’t correlate with watershed
- Pond leaks
- Inappropriate dam
- Steep sides –increases velocity of the water making it more difficult to control erosion, and difficult to get in and out of the pond.
My family had a pond built on their land. The result? It collected rainwater and had a small amount of stocked fish. No vegetation grew. It was deep and the sides were steep and slippery. One day, my young daughter and her friend went in and couldn’t get out. They were going to drown. I jumped in and pushed them up to the shore with all my might. Then, exhausted but relieved, I struggled out.
As Master Naturalists, we will have plenty of volunteer opportunities to work around lakes and ponds. Property owners can seek out workshops and seminars on pond management. Study the bodies of water and ask yourself what has been done to manage it properly.