Tell me what this is.

[Aquaman]

I took this photo for a story I'm writing.

What is it?

[OldBaldGuy]

The Kershaw of all amoebas?

[Tone2129]

Water on top of a Lilly Pad?

[BPbowhunter]

Originally Posted by Tone2129

Water on top of a Lilly Pad?

[Aquaman]

Dang, you guys are good. It's actually water beading on top of an American Lotus. The pads are huge!!

[Aquaman]

Here's a blown up view.

Trust me...you don't want this in your pond.

[Mako]

Why are lilly pads so bad?

[Aquaman]

Originally Posted by Mako

Why are lilly pads so bad?

They're not always bad, but when they're bad they're really, REALLY bad.

And that's not just any lily pad. That's American Lotus.

Do you see what water does when it sits on top of it? That's the same thing that herbicides will do when you apply them. Then imagine an entire ten acre pond covered with these from one side to the other.

Fish don't mind them. It's the fisherman that have problems with them.

Not good.

[Chad]

Cool pictures, Bruce!
Make sure to point out the article when it's published.

[holdemplyer]

That is a really cool pic Bruce.

[Shorty]

Do you see what water does when it sits on top of it? That's the same thing that herbicides will do when you apply them.

A good surfactant will help break the natural surface tension of water so the appropriate herbicide can go to work and do it's job. For an example of how surfactant works take a glass and fill it with water and then see how high you can get it over the rim without spilling the water. Then do the same thing with some slightly soapy water, soap is a surfactant, the difference will become very apparent. Note: hard water will work better for this demonstration than soft water as water softners also help to reduce the surface tension of water.

[Frosch]

Originally Posted by Aquaman

Here's a blown up view.

Trust me...you don't want this in your pond.

Looks like a fun to fish a horney toad!

[Aquaman]

Funny you should say that.

My brother-in-law was doing just that. And he was absolutely kicking butt with it.

[Aquaman]

From Daryl...

Actually anytime I see lily pads or lotus, I know that water body has relatively stable water levels and good water quality. Generally that means great habitat for fish!

Fishermen and women can learn to fish in and around them.

Daryl B.

I actually really like fishing around them, but the landowner was horrified early in the spring to see nearly 60% coverage in his pond. The pond manager suggested that the lotus should just be controlled in the necessary area, because it would be impractical and extremely expensive to eradicate. I caught tons of nice bluegill and bass right on the edge of the lotus.

[Frosch]

Originally Posted by Aquaman

From Daryl...

Actually anytime I see lily pads or lotus, I know that water body has relatively stable water levels and good water quality. Generally that means great habitat for fish!

Fishermen and women can learn to fish in and around them.

Daryl B.

I actually really like fishing around them, but the landowner was horrified early in the spring to see nearly 60% coverage in his pond. The pond manager suggested that the lotus should just be controlled in the necessary area, because it would be impractical and extremely expensive to eradicate. I caught tons of nice bluegill and bass right on the edge of the lotus.

When I was at Rock Creek in the end of July there were areas of pads. I too really enjoyed fishing around it. It was a blast to fish a horny toad over them and have the pads explode with a bass. If they missed then it was a challenge to try and place my senko in the exact spot that it missed.

</IMG></IMG>

[Fish Recycler]

Can water depth be used to control lotus?

For example, if I have a shelf that runs 3' deep but drops quickly to 8' deep, and it runs one side of a pond - will the lotus be confined to that because it doesn't like the deeper water? Or can it go deeper and invade the whole pond?

Also, can it be controlled by changing bottom substrate? What does it like / dislike?

[Aquaman]

Originally Posted by Fish Recycler

Can water depth be used to control lotus?

For example, if I have a shelf that runs 3' deep but drops quickly to 8' deep, and it runs one side of a pond - will the lotus be confined to that because it doesn't like the deeper water? Or can it go deeper and invade the whole pond?

Also, can it be controlled by changing bottom substrate? What does it like / dislike?

Great questions. I'm not really totally qualified to answer, but my understanding that the key to minimizing or eliminating lotus infestations is to maintain a decent phytoplankton bloom. If your water gets too clear, the rooted plants can extend much further out from the shoreline. People who have trouble with these in medium to larger ponds often can take care of the problem by aeration, which keep nutrients suspended, which are in turn used by phytoplankton, which in turn shades the bottom of the pond. This also allows aerobic, as opposed to anaerobic digestion and elimination of nitrogenous biological wastes. The pond is healthier in the long term, more resistant to fish kills due to sudden plant die-offs, and also less likely to harbor massive colonies of lotus.

Not sure about the substrate question.

[Fish Recycler]

Some good stuff here!

Can water depth be used to control lotus?

For example, if I have a shelf that runs 3' deep but drops quickly to 8' deep, and it runs one side of a pond - will the lotus be confined to that because it doesn't like the deeper water? Or can it go deeper and invade the whole pond?

Also, can it be controlled by changing bottom substrate? What does it like / dislike?

I will "second" what "Aquaman" has already told you--it largely depends on water quality. If the water is clear enough the lillies or lotus can grow relatively deep, certainly deeper than 3 feet and maybe as deep as 8 feet. So, yes, deepening, if possible, could be one way to manage the lillies or lotus, but if the water is clear enough deepening might not accomplish what you hoped.

That brings up an interesting point, I said that one thing I know when I see growths of water lillies or lotus is that water levels are relatively stable. Another possible way of knocking them back would be to raise the water level if possible (I realize that is rarely possible, but I will throw it out there anyway).

Those plants like organic bottom substrates--harder bottoms with more sand or gravel are less likely to have stands of lillies or lotus.

Besides chemical treatments another technique that could be used, especially to create some openings would be use some type of barrier or "blanket" on the bottom to prevent the plants from growing. Anchoring down some sheets of black plastic or perhaps "engineering cloth" would be one way to shade out those plants and keep them from growing.

Just some rambling ideas,

Daryl B.

P.S. Feel free to share this message with others if you wish.

[skeeter85]

hm, i was going to say it was breast implants laying on a football field...but now that i look closer, you're right. water on a lilypad

[Aquaman]

Originally Posted by skeeter85

hm, i was going to say it was breast implants laying on a football field...but now that i look closer, you're right. water on a lilypad

FINALLY! Somebody got it right!