Water lettuce and hyacinth

[Casbah]

I'm a long-time gardener, but have little experience with water plants.

My water lettuce and hyacinths have EXPLODED in growth the last several weeks. So much so they nearly cover my pond. Do they normally grow this fast? Especially so late in the season? I've not been feeding any more than normal but is this an indication I should cut back?

 

[SherrysPond]

I wish I knew, my water hyacinths all turned black and died last spring...................lucky you!!!

 

[Lisak1]

Perfectly normal. They love the heat. I would recommend you don't let them cover the entire surface - pull out the excess and compost them.

 

[JBtheExplorer]

I tried water lettuce and water hyacinth in 2013-2014 but they never did well so I decided not to try them again.

Both are now illegal in Wisconsin, so I definitely won't be trying them again.

 

[CometKeith]

I'm a long-time gardener, but have little experience with water plants.

My water lettuce and hyacinths have EXPLODED in growth the last several weeks. So much so they nearly cover my pond. Do they normally grow this fast? Especially so late in the season? I've not been feeding any more than normal but is this an indication I should cut back?

Hi. It’s easy for them to multiply a lot if you have warm water, plenty of nutrients.. ie fish waste, and no one nibbling at their roots (Koi). You definitely don’t want them covering more than 50% of the pond surface otherwise it will hurt the oxygenation of the water. The local pond club here collects everyone’s wh and gives it to the zoo for food for the Hippos in the fall. Silly laws against them have never stopped me! Remember Chicago also outlawed Foie Gras for a while. They made wh and wl illegal because in warm climates they will clog the waterways. I’m not throwing mine in any rivers and even if I did that here in Northern Illinois they would die in the winter. I recently saw millions of wh in rivers on a trip to Viet Nam. The biggest problem they had with them is they would clog their fish nets.

 

[Lisak1]

I will contribute bail money when they come and toss you in jail @CometKeith

It is another dumb law with no real purpose. We get a few cool nights - not even really cold - and they all start to die. The theory is the SEEDS can survive the winter and sprout in the spring and grow. But again - just let it get cool and they are goners. Politicians need to worry about real problems.

 

[CometKeith]

I will contribute bail money when they come and toss you in jail @CometKeith

It is another dumb law with no real purpose. We get a few cool nights - not even really cold - and they all start to die. The theory is the SEEDS can survive the winter and sprout in the spring and grow. But again - just let it get cool and they are goners. Politicians need to worry about real problems.

Thanks Lisa! Also I forgot to mention another law most people don’t follow...transporting bullfrogs over state lines. I know this will get me in trouble ... but these are some of the same states that that freely allows semiautomatic weapons to legally cross state lines!

 

[dustboy]

This is my first time around with WH, it did okay over the summer but never thrived. It's starting to turn black now, night time temps are dipping into the 40's.

Oddly enough there is a nursery a few miles away with a big koi pond, with WH and WL covering 50% of the surface, it is much greener and even has flowers. Haven't been there since the temperatures dropped though.

 

[Lisak1]

@dustboy - I have hyacinths in both my patio pond and pond less waterfall that are insane. Huge, deep green, keep multiplying. I moved some to my pond and meh... they're pale and puny. They survive, but they rarely do as well in my pond as my other two water features. No clue why, other than just too much competition from the other plants maybe. The roots look great - long and flowing - but the part that should be lovely is just not all that great. I keep trying though... I mean, I have to move all those baby hyacinths somewhere!

Here they are in my patio pond - literally growing over the side:

And here the are in the pond - which looks like a jungle right now. Kind of hard to spot, but they are on the right, just below the pot of flowers sitting on the rock. To the left is the lotus, to the right is a lizards tail, in the middle are my yellow, sad hyacinths:

 

[Lisak1]

Thanks Lisa! Also I forgot to mention another law most people don’t follow...transporting bullfrogs over state lines. I know this will get me in trouble ... but these are some of the same states that that freely allows semiautomatic weapons to legally cross state lines!

That's a great example of the real issues that get avoided while our lawmakers are worried about plants. I understand the importance of not introducing non-native species... I just think it gets aggravating when they ban things that have no chance of surviving in our climate.