Should You Use Grass Carp For Aquatic Weed Control?
Written by Author on October 30th, 2009Controlling the plant life in a pond, or any body of water is very important. Why you ask? Simple, since for some reason or another, you’ve decided that you don’t desire it to be there. No matter if those plants have generated some type of nuisance for swimmers, or have just simply stopped up the engine on a favorite motorboat, you want them to be gone, and there’s many methods of doing this.
Of course you can use chemicals, plastic lining, freezing, manually pulling them up, or perhaps even dye, but those are fairly strenuous, and there is no guarantee that the pond, or even the fish, would actually be the same again after such an effort. So it is about time to look into alternative methods—techniques that will not damage you OR the pond.
In nineteen sixty-three, a new fish was introduced in to the U.S. ecology, and this fish was called the Grass Carp. It was deliberately integrated into the ecosystem for one purpose of eliminating aquatic plant life, and thus far it has lived up to it’s reputation. In the US, A Grass Carp is commonly referred to as the White Amur, presumably because the word Carp holds negative interpretations here in the U.S., and the name “Amur” is a reference to the river that the fish originates from, a river that borders China and Russia.
The Grass Carp, is what’s referred to as an invasive species, indicating that it will reproduce and take over the ecosystem that it’s placed in (sort of like humans), but fortunately science has progressed a long way, and though it required some time, as well as lots of gene manipulation, sterilizing a Grass Carp became standard everywhere in the world so that the introduction does not harm or destroy the ecosystem.
Another thing to take into account, is that the Grass Carp does not consume every kind of grass, naturally it enjoys plant life, and would consume the vast majority of it, however just like humans, there are items that it prefers over others. A few of the things that the Grass Carp does like, are:
Coontail
Spikerush
Smartweed
Bladderwort
Bulrush
Water hyssop
Eelgrass
There are many additional grasses, and a visit to the library, a web query, or talking with an expert will quickly let you know the things a grass carp would consume.
When purchased in large amounts, Grass Carp is pretty cheap, at about $10-20 per fish, which is perfectly reasonable considering how long it will last; living for around ten to eleven years.
In some states, you will be required to acquire a license before you place Grass Carp in any body of water, whether it is your water. To find out if that’s required, speak with the game warden in your area, or just examine the laws of the state, as that info is freely accessible to any person who requires it.
Clearly, Grass Carp are an excellent alternate means from using chemicals, or even lining your pond with plastic, since not just are they perfect for getting rid of undesired plant life, you should additionally remember that it’s a symbiotic relationship, you provide something that they desire, and then they provide their services to you, preventing you from having to do it yourself. On the whole, this is a good deal.
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