Governing the plant life in a pond, or any other body of water is quite critical. Why you ask? Well, because for some reason or another, you have chosen that you do not want it there. Whether these plants have create some sort of nuisance for swimmers, or have have simply stopped up the motor on a favorite motorboat, you wish them to be gone, and there are many ways to do it.

Of course you can utilize chemical substances, plastic lining, freezing, manually pulling, or perhaps even dye, but these are fairly strenuous, and there’s no promise that your pond, or fish, would actually be anywhere near what it was following these actions. So it’s about time to look into alternative methods—techniques which will not damage you OR your pond.

In nineteen sixty-three, a new fish was placed in the U.S. ecological, and this fish was known as the Grass Carp. This fish was deliberately introduced into the ecosystem for the simple purpose of eradicating aquatic plants, and so far it has done a great job. Within the United States, the Grass Carp is often referred to as a White Amur, presumably because of the fact that the word Carp holds derogatory meanings here in the United States., and the name “Amur” is a reference to the river that the fish comes from, a river that borders China and Russia.

The Grass Carp, is what is referred to as an intrusive species, meaning that it’ll reproduce and overtake any ecosystem that it is placed in (sort of like humans), but fortunately science has come far, and though it required a lot of time, as well as a lot of gene manipulation, sterilizing a Grass Carp finally became standard all over the world so that it’s introduction does not harm or destroy the local ecology.

Another detail to take into account, is the fact that the Grass Carp does not consume everything, of course it enjoys plant life, and would consume most of it, however as humans, there are things which it prefers more than others. A few of the items that the Grass Carp will enjoy, are:

Coontail
Spikerush
Smartweed
Bladderwort
Bulrush
Water hyssop
Eelgrass

There are several additional grasses, and a quick trip to a library, a web search, or talking with an expert will immediately reveal what the grass carp would eat.

When purchased in large amounts, Grass Carp is pretty cheap, ranging from about $10-20 per fish, which is very reasonable considering how long it’ll last; surviving for around 10-11 years.

In some states, you will need to get a license before you place Grass Carp into any body of water, whether it is your water. To find out if that’s necessary, talk to the game warden near you, or just check the regulations of your state, since this information is readily available to any person that needs it.

As you can see, Grass Carp are a great alternate means from utilizing chemicals, or even lining the pond with plastic, since not just are they great for ridding you of unwanted plants, you must also keep in mind that it’s a symbiotic relationship, you provide the thing they desire, and in return they give a service to you, preventing you from needing to do this on your own. Overall, this is a great deal.

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