Moss is already showing up in area farm ponds and some knowledgable with it believe the cause is runoff from early spring rains.
Gary Barnett, an area resident, says he’s noticed a considerable amount of moss already in local ponds, among them his own.
“I haven’t done anything yet,” he began, “but in the past I’ve tried different breeds of carp and chemicals. We’re still having a lot of problems.”
Barnett thinks the moss in his pond is strange, explaining, “In that it breaks loose and floats and is a brighter green. It moves around more,” he added.
He noted, “It just seems to be a different kind of moss this year. I haven’t tried any carp or chemicals so far this year.”
Carla Smith is Horticulture Educator with the OSU Extension Center in Shawnee.
She explained there are several things than can help. Smith pointed to “nutrient runoff can be somewhat avoided in some areas.
“In higher end neighborhoods the high nutrient runoff comes from what is applied to the lawn. A lot of organic matter in the pond will start decomposing and cause an imbalance in the pond. Sometimes we’ll see livestock in the pond cooling off and drinking and they’ll do what they do,” she states.
Smith noted that too much cattle traffic causes the organic matter to build up.
She said that managing the cattle in the pond where there is a cattle issue is the key.
Smith suggests, “If people will leave the grass 8 to 10 inches inches taller right next to the water it will create a buffer and slow down the nutrients to the pond. The nutrients will settle out because green and growing plant material helps slow the nutrients.”
She further recommends if there’s a slope to the pond to leave a 10-12 feet area with that taller grass before the water. “It doesn’t have to be clear around the pond,” she stressed.
Smith points out several things to consider if chemicals are going to be used to rid the moss from the pond. One is livestock and animals, including house pets, another is if it’s going to be used for irrigation, a third is are there fish in the pond and a fourth is if people are going to swim in the pond.
“We have two really good fact sheets,” she said.
One will help with the identification of the problem and another will assist with the weed management and which herbicide to use that is safe. People can look them
People can look them up online by going to Okstatefactsheet.edu. The one for identification of the problem is NREM-9211 and for herbicide management the sheet number is SRAC-361.
Smith emphasizes, “If they use a herbicide to treat a pond, they can only treat one-third of it at a time because you have to manage it and fish in the pond need some of that plant material so it can’t be applied all at once.
State Game Warden Mike France, who is assigned to Pottawatomie County, said he hasn’t seen an overabundance of moss in area ponds. “There doesn’t seem to be an overwhelming amount,” he believes.