Aquatic Tools
We are pleased to present our selection of aquatic weed tools to control invasive plants.
As aquatic habitats evolve due to nutrient loading, pollution or species competition, we know that the problems we face as water stewards can markedly change from year to year. Invasive aquatic plants such as duckweed and Eurasian Water Milfoil are becoming more problematic for many of our clients. Canadianpond.ca is here to assist with a wide array of aquatic weed management tools for many applications. We also carry other accessories to help manage surface waters. See below for details and follow links to our product pages.
Invasive aquatic plants represent a serious problem for some pond and lake owners. Unfortunately, many aquatic weed infestations are dealt with through the use of aquatic herbicides. Fluridone is an aquatic herbicide often used to control invasive plants. It can be found under the names Sonar, Avast! and Whitecap and is used in the United States to control hydrilla and Eurasian watermilfoil among other species. These chemicals are applied directly to lakes and can seriously harm the ecosystem, endangered species and threaten human health.
Here in Canada we have no choice but to look for non-toxic alternatives as the use of herbicides is not permitted. There are factors that can be controlled and others that are more difficult to manage. For instance, we cannot easily control the billions of seeds released from cattails every fall. We can however manage the sediment in strategic locations to inhibit unwanted seed germination. Please do not forget to visit our water treatments, aeration sections as well as our Resources section to find out about all your options to deal with unwanted aquatic weeds and algae.
Our tools can help manage unwanted aquatic weeds, here is how:
- Mechanical harvesting, cutting, scooping of aquatic plants (Aquatic Weed Rakes and Cutters, Water Weedsickle)
- Blocking plant germination while allowing gaseous exchange (Lake Bottom Blanket)
- Blocking UV rays, creating shade to reduce deep water plant production (CanadianPond dyes)
- Nutrient reduction in water column and in sediments (aeration and Beneficial Bacteria), reducing habitat for many invasive aquatic plants
- Increasing available oxygen (O2) in an aquatic system (aeration), to assist with beneficial bacterial production and slow down eutrophication
Aquatic Weed Shear, Cutters, Rakes and Forks
Canadianpond.ca carries a good selection of aquatic weed-cutting hand tools that include rakes (Lake Rake, RakeZilla), a fork, and one direction or two direction cutters (Weed Shear, Aquatic Weed Eradicator). For some submerged aquatic weeds, regular cutting will weaken the plant and interfere with its ability to reproduce by seed.
Water Weedsickle, Motorized Aquatic weed cutter
For larger bodies of water we have the Water Weedsickle which is a motorized aquatic weed cutter. It is battery operated and attaches to port, starboard or stern of a boat. The cutting tool will cut to a depth of 4 feet. It improves boat access, paddling and water skiing in areas choked with submerged aquatic weeds.
We have clients in a bay in Kawartha who have purchased this unit and shared it with their neighbors, much like a lake association would do. Their bay is shallow and full of mats of thick Eurasian milfoil. They take turns “mowing” a path to their docks, so they have easier access for the boats and for water skiing.
Visit our online shop: Weedsickle
Aquatic Weed Barrier:
Aquascreen and Lake Bottom Blankets are good choices for situations where a bottom barrier to slow unwanted aquatic weed growth is desired, for instance at a beach or below a dock. These have durable design that allows gaseous exchange at the sediment level while inhibiting plant growth underneath. Those benthic barriers are an environmentally friendly solution to control unwanted invasive pond weeds such as: Canadian Waterweed (elodea canadensis), Eurasian watermilfoil (myriophyllum spicatum), Water stargrass (heteranthera dubia), Wild celery (vallisneria americana), Potamogeton and other pond weeds. Ponds, lakes and beaches upkeep as never been so easy!
One client of ours decided to renovate his pond to remove the proliferation of aquatic plants that thrived there. Some were planted, some arrived naturally. After re-digging the pond, he hired us to line the entire pond with Aquascreen. A big job, but certainly worth the effort! Every two years or so, it is recommended to clean the benthic barrier by removing the organic sediment that settles on its surface.
Visit our online shop: Lake Bottom Blanket , or contact us to purchase the Aquascreen
We have extensive experience in aquatic management for a wide range of water-related issues
Contact us, it is very likely that we have the answers to your questions!