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P1011574

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Comment by Jim Gronaw on October 25, 2012 at 3:45pm: Does anybody know anything about the granular form of the weed killer 'sonar'? I hear it can be used for specific locational treatments in larger lakes in areas like boat docks, marinas, launch ramps and beaches, etc. I know of at least one pond owner who is please with its' results.

Comment by Leo Nguyen on October 25, 2012 at 3:43pm: 1. Copper sulfate don't harm much of the aquatic life, however, high concentration of copper in the long run will damage livers for all living creatures along the food chain.

2. Herbicides of variety: think of it as Agent Orange. You may not notice the effects now, but in due time, you tend to get things grow out of your that you would not like, or inherit something that you wish you rather be dead.

Comment by John Sheehan on October 25, 2012 at 3:36pm: I see Dick that it's cheaper to poison than mow to remove weeds in a small suburban lake but what is the health consequence .In the long run with subsequent visits to the Doctor's office I'm wondering if it's really cheaper .I am trying to figure this out and appreciate everyones input .!

Comment by dick tabbert on October 25, 2012 at 3:29pm: They kill all the weeds because that's the cheapest way to rid the lake from its weeds and they get more bang for there buck. Most poisons don't discriminate they kill most everything.

Comment by dick tabbert on October 25, 2012 at 3:25pm: Leo I think you hit a home run but at this time it's cheaper to poison off a lake than to mow it. Weeds grow at a frantic pace. We have people with contracts at least in some of the Michigan waters that I fish who literally mow the weeds. He told me he could only mow the top 6' and with the weeds growing as fast as they do he can't keep up but + the expense price tag that goes along with the mowing. I did ask him what he did with the weed that he mowed. He said he dumped them in a field to dry them out and then they were used for mulch which went to some of the farm fields in the area. Bottom line its much cheaper for the States to poison than mow. You poison once or twice a year and mowing goes on continually.

Comment by John Sheehan on October 25, 2012 at 3:18pm: 20% is an acceptance that may not apply to CUPSAW.

Comment by John Sheehan on October 25, 2012 at 3:16pm: Thank you VERY MUCH again Tony ! Cupsaw lake is a 65 acre Suburban New Jersey Lake and filled with lake front houses. Septic,laundry water runoff and lawn fertilizer is entering the lake obviously.

I 'm wondering if it possible to have a weed population in harmony with this polluted lake. Are natural weeds not a filtering process that can help the entire eco system ?Why kill all of them ?

Comment by Leo Nguyen on October 25, 2012 at 3:03pm: Being a pond owner, you nailed it pretty square on the head Tony. The Dept Fish and Game, as well as lakes/waterways management groups, over here in California are feverishly control plant growth years. They don't need to add nutrients into the lake, since there are plenty of it from the urbanization and agricultural farmlands. To prevent many more millions dollars loss due to aquatic death, they rather spend a fraction of that to drop off aquatic herbicides to prevent heavy blooms which ultimately kills the aquatic population.

Eehhhh..I'm rambling. Point is, it's truly all depend. The plant salvaged out of the waters were used as composted fertilizers and slope erosion management. Why toss it in the trash which end up in the limited landfill space.

Comment by Tony Livingston on October 25, 2012 at 2:56pm: Aquatic weed control has got to be one of the most debated, contested, and usually expensive issues facing pondowners and public water users alike. There is no one-size-fits-all solution for every situation.....as the folks over at PondBoss like to say, "it depends"

Some plant growth is beneficial, as cover for forage, or structure for the larger fish. In addition, plants are awesome producers of oxygen, always a good thing for a BOW.

On the other hand too much plant growth can be detrimental to good fishing, by making casting impossible, or fouling hooks/lures. Also, if the growth is too extensive, it makes the predators job too hard....the result being a BOW full of stunted BG....too many hiding spots.

Also, the dying off and subsequent decaying of aquatic plant growth can result in a fishkill, as the plants obviously quit producing oxygen when they die, AND use up even more oxygen during the decaying process.

Striking the perfect balance is tricky. GENERALLY....it is supposed that having 20% of the BOW utilized by plants is acceptable. But, it all depends.......