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Message: [QUOTE="Lisak1, post: 520569, member: 6145"] Plants really are the best option for fighting string algae. But it can take a couple of years and it can be hard for a new pondkeeper to be patient. You so badly want that pond to be crystal clear and free from algae overgrowth. Using Algaefix only exacerbates the issue as anything that KILLS algae leaves you with DEAD algae in the pond. Nothing algae loves more than more dead organics in the water. We had TONS of string algae the first two years - I mean buckets and bushels of it. I would pull out giant balls of it from the bottom of the pond on a daily basis. I would just toss it in the garden - great stuff to feed the soil. And to me there was something encouraging about the fact that my pond could support plant life, even if it wasn't the kind I was hoping to grow! (And I know algae isn't technically "plant" but you know what I mean.) My husband came from an aquarium background and he did lean toward "let's treat the problem" - he wanted to use an algae control product or salt the pond. But what I always kept in mind was the advice we got from a guy who had been keeping and maintaining ponds for decades - he said it takes 2 full seasons for pond water to mature. Once it does, you're golden. Before that, just leave it be. I was able to convince my husband to just give it time and that advice proved to be spot on. We did nothing but keep adding plants and pulling that algae out as it grew. From year three on, the only string we get is on the waterfall in the early spring - once the plants get going the string algae disappears, If it's a slow, cool spring I may have to pull the string off the rocks just to keep the water flowing well, but otherwise we just leave it be. I always see it as a sign that the pond season is underway. And interesting thing I've been observing in this first winter with our underwater camera is the change in the carpet of algae on the rocks. The vibrant green algae that was there all summer appeared to die and turn gray as the water got cold. And then, like magic, a different type of algae all together has replaced it - it's once again green and the fish are always snacking away. Nature is truly full of surprises! [/QUOTE]

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