Be Careful of the Plants You Plant Near Your Pond

Bookmark and Share

View all images from this article.

July / August, 2010

Chuck Baldwin


Sent as a letter to the Editor.

Root that punctured liner.

I just thought it might be worth mentioning to your readers. I planted a variegated water reed grass (Variegated Phragmites) in my pond a few years ago (obtained from a pond supply place near us). I had it in a submerged pot. It seeded at the edge of my pond, and not knowing any better, thinking it looked great, I left it alone.

After about four years, I decided to clean out the pond and completely drained it. To my dismay I found several holes with sharp points protruding through the liner (30 mil EDPM).

After determining that it was some kind of plant, I pulled up the liner and discovered large (pencil diameter size) runners going completely from one side to the other side of the pond underneath the liner, with these needle sharp protrusions (much like a sharp pencil and just as hard) coming from the runners, pushing up against and through the underside of the liner. I’ve had to remove all these ‘roots’ (hope I’ve gotten them all) and replaced the liner.

Needless to say I won’t allow this in my pond anymore or anywhere around the edge of the pond. You might want to caution your readers about using this grass (or at least find some way of controlling it as I should have). The cost of liner replacement, as well as having to remove and replace the border rock, was high and shouldn’t have been needed.


 Subscribe to POND Trade Articles


Bookmark and Share

Post a Comment

Ajax Comment Posting

Name is Required.

Your email address is required, but will not be published.

Invalid Email Address

You must enter a comment.

We value your thoughtful opinions and encourage you to add your comments regarding this article. Please note, comments may be published in the Letters to the Editor section of the print edition of POND Trade Magazine. Posting comments signifies agreement with this policy. Additionally, comments may be edited for clarity or not posted, at the discretion of the Editor. Thank you for your thoughts.

Globally Recognized Avatars

Comment Preview

Gravatar

1. Posted on February 8th, 2012 at 11:57 pm.

By .

More articles from this issue.