Question
Hi:
How do I determine how much Barley Straw to add to my pond to get rid of algae ??
Tom
Answer
Greetings!<BR><BR>Thank you for submitting your question to AskNSDL. We apologize for the delay. It appears that a specialist wasn't able to find time to respond to your question. <BR><BR>I am a librarian and have found free, Internet resources from quality sites that supply this information. I checked the AskNSDL Resources listed under "Botany" and searched AgNIC, The Agriculture Information Network, <A href=http://laurel.nal.usda.gov:8080/agnic">http://laurel.nal.usda.gov:8080/agnic</A>. I typed the following terms in the search box: algae "barley straw" and retrieved two results.<BR><BR>* Lembi, Carole A. "Aquatic Plant Management." Dept. of Botany and Plant Pathology, Purdue University. 08/02. This is an 8 page document that provides an overview and considerations for using barley straw to control plant algae in ponds. From the Table of Contents on the left hand side of the page, click: "If you do choose to use barley, how do you do it?" (p. 4) <BR><A href=http://www.btny.purdue.edu/Pubs/APM/APM-1-W.pdf">http://www.btny.purdue.edu/Pubs/APM/APM-1-W.pdf</A><BR><BR>* Holz, John C. "Controlling Pond Algae with Barley Straw." Cooperative Extension, Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Nebraska-Lincoln. May 2000. You'll find information about when, how and how much to apply. Go to the webpage for the full article, <A href=http://ianrpubs.unl.edu/wildlife/nf429.htm">http://ianrpubs.unl.edu/wildlife/nf429.htm</A> . Here is an excerpt fromt that page that targets your question: <BR><BR>
<P><I>Example: Determining the amount of straw required to treat a 5-acre pond.</I>
<P>
<OL type=1>
<LI>The surface area of the pond is 5 acres.
<P></P>
<LI>The selected dose is 225 pounds of straw per acre.
<P></P>
<LI>Multiply the area of the pond (in acres) by the amount of straw required per acre to calculate the total amount of straw required to treat the whole pond (5 acres x 225 lbs/acre = 1125 lbs).
<P></P>
<LI>To calculate the number to bales needed to treat the pond, divide the total amount of straw required to treat the whole pond by the weight of a single bale of barley straw. For this example, assume one bale weighs 45 pounds. However, the size and weight of bales can be highly variable. It is recommended that the approximate weight of the bales be determined at the time of purchase (1125 lbs, 45 lbs/bale = 25 bales).</LI></OL>
<P>I hope this information is helpful. If have additional questions, please resubmit and we will do what we can to help you out. Our experts are all volunteers and schedules are very busy. We are sorry for not responding sooner.<BR><BR>Best wishes,<BR>Joyce W.<BR>AskNSDL staff</P>
http://www.btny.purdue.edu/Pubs/APM/APM-1-W.pdf
http://ianrpubs.unl.edu/wildlife/nf429.htm
algae<BR>barley straw<BR>ponds<BR>
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