Effective methods to remove water hyacinth from your pond

Water hyacinths are one of those plants that are deceptively beautiful, but to anyone unlucky enough to plant them in warm climates, they can become disastrous. Without proper control, water hyacinth can become problematic.

These floating perennial plants can display beautiful purple flowers, making your aquatic garden look ethereal. Planting there for your pond may seem like a good idea, but it won’t be long before you need to control them when they take over.

Why are water hyacinths a problem

Water hyacinths are a threat to dams, waterways, ponds and aquatic wildlife. They often form dense mats so thick that they make it hard for aquatic life to survive. It grows aggressively when met with warmer conditions and devastates aquatic environments. These plants are not just an inconvenience but an ecological one. Since they dominate the water’s surface, they block sunlight and disrupt water circulation in many ponds, hindering the growth of native plants. All this rapid overgrowth can cause serious damage to your aquatic garden.

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How to control water hyacinth

Managing water hyacinths is no small feat, but there are effective ways to rid your garden ponds of these plants for good. It may take several tries to get rid of water hyacinth because of its weed-like behaviour. However, by using these effective methods, you can see a change as time goes on.

Chemical spraying: This is an effective solution because it attacks weed growth in shallow water on or above the surface. Chemical spraying is the most commonly used technique, and treatments with chemical spraying should be carried out early in the water hyacinth growing season.
Physical removal: Control attempts should be made by removing the plants by hand from the water. This can be effective when the water hyacinth is not in its growing season. Mechanical removal can also be effective if there is a larger infestation.
Biological control: Introducing animal species that feed on these weeds can be an effective method of destroying large water hyacinths. These species will attack the bacteria and fungi that enhance the water hyacinth.