Rec and Sports

Should You Use Grass Carp For Water Weed Control?

Managing the aquatic plants within a pond, or in any body of water is extremely critical. Why you say? Well, since for some reason or another, you have chosen that you don’t want it there. Whether these plants have generated some sort of hindrance for swimmers, or have just simply stopped up the motor on your favorite boat, you want them to be gone, and there’s several ways to do this.

Of course you could use chemical substances, plastic lining, freezing, manual pulling, or perhaps even dye, however these are mighty strenuous, and there’s no promise that the pond, or even the fish, will ever be the same again following such an effort. Therefore it is time to look into alternative means-techniques which will not break your back OR your pond.

In 1963, a new fish was placed in the United States ecological, and that fish was called the Grass Carp. This fish was deliberately introduced into our ecosystem for the simple reason of eliminating aquatic plant life, and so far it’s lived up to it’s reputation. Here in the US, A Grass Carp is often called the White Amur, presumably because of the fact that the phrase Carp holds derogatory meanings here in the United States., and the name “Amur” is a reference to the river which this fish originates from, the river that borders China and Russia.

The Grass Carp, is what is known as an invasive species, meaning that it’ll multiply and take over the ecosystem which it’s placed in (sort of like humans), however science has progressed a long way, and while it took some time, as well as lots of gene manipulation, sterilizing the Grass Carp finally became standard procedure all over the world so that the introduction does not hurt or destroy the ecosystem.

An additional thing to take into account, is the fact that the Grass Carp doesn’t consume every kind of grass, naturally it loves plants, and will consume the vast majority of it, however just like humans, there are items that it prefers over others. A couple of the items which the Grass Carp does like, are:

Coontail Spikerush Smartweed Bladderwort Bulrush Water hyssop Eelgrass

There are several others, and a visit to the library, an Internet search, or a consultation with a professional would immediately let you know the things a grass carp would eat.

When bought in large amounts, Grass Carp is fairly inexpensive, at about $10-20 per fish, and that is perfectly reasonable when you consider how long it’ll last; surviving for about ten to eleven years.

In certain states, you’ll be required to get a license before you place Grass Carp in any body of water, whether it is owned by you. To find out if this is necessary, speak with a game warden in your area, or simply examine the laws of your state, as that info is freely accessible to anyone that needs it.

As you can see, Grass Carp are a great alternate means from utilizing chemicals, or even lining the pond with plastic, because not just are these great for ridding you of unwanted plant life, you should also remember that this is a symbiotic relationship, you give the thing they desire, and then they give a service to you, keeping you from needing to do this yourself. Overall, that’s a good exchange.

Before you purchase Grass Carp, make sure you visit Dave Duncan’s excellent website on Grass Carp, www.grasscarp.com