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Duckweed
 Duckweed, from the plant family Lemnaceae is a family of flowering plants, known as the duckweed family, as it contains the duckweeds or water lentils. The duckweeds are now known to be a branch of the arum or aroid family (Araceae), These plants are very simple, lacking an obvious stem or leaves, but consist of a small 'thalloid' or plate-like structure that floats on or just under the water surface.
In the photo to the right, the larger Duckweed is surrounded by its more prolific cousin, Watermeal
To give you example of the sizes of each plant, the smaller watermeal shown in the photo is about the size of corn meal. Which makes Duckweed about the size of a pencil eraser. Duckweed is commonly a secondary, less prolific infestation but just like Watermeal, indicates declining pond health due to an overabundance of nutrients.
Duckweed is a very small light green free-floating plant that has 1 to 3 leaves that are 1/16 to 1/8 inch in length. A single hair-like root protrudes from each leaf. Duckweed tends to grow in dense colonies in quiet water, undisturbed by wave action. Although duckweed can grow in almost any body of water, it typically thrives in older nutrient loaded lakes and ponds that are surrounded by trees or tucked into valleys.
Duckweed can be aggressive invaders of ponds and under ideal conditions can reproduce exponentially in a matter of just a few days! Dense duckweed colonies are often mixed with mosquito fern, filamentous algae, or watermeal. If these colonies cover the surface of the water and block sunlight from entering the pond, then oxygen depletions and fish kills can and oftentimes occur. Duckweed should be controlled before it covers the entire surface of the pond.
In small amounts, duckweed colonies provide habitat for micro invertebrates and food for waterfowl, but it can easily become invasive! When duckweed completely covers the surface of a pond for an extended period it will cause severe damage to your pond's ecosystem.
The best way to combat duckweed is to simply create conditions unfavorable for duckweed to thrive in! Duckweed prefers stagnant water, that is loaded with nutrients. Lawn fertilizers, field runoff, twigs, leaves, grass clippings, and waterfowl droppings would be major sources of nutrients that feed duckweed. There is not one magical way of completely eliminating duckweed from a pond. The process of creating a healthy duckweed free ecosystem is indeed a process.
Applying aquatic herbicides does kill duckweed, but they do not fix any of the problems causing the duckweed. Aeration systems are a good longterm fix to duckweed infestations, but they usually are not enough of a habitat change to get rid of duckweed in the first few years. Using pond bacteria and enzymes will immediately help reduce the nutrient load, but they also typically wont eliminate duckweed for a few years either!
We have found that the very best way of getting rid of duckweed is a 3 step process. Remember that especially with ponds the saying "one size fits all" couldn't be farther from the truth! Every pond is unique from the next and there are many variables associated with a ponds geographical location, local weather conditions, watershed, pond ages, depths, and water chemistry. That being said the following plan would be the average prescription for a duckweed infested pond:
1. Calculate exact acreage and depths to properly design a complete pond aeration system. An aeration system should turn over the complete volume of water in the pond at least once every 24 hours. Properly designing the aeration system with the correct type and size of compressor is just as crucial as diffuser placement.
2. Implement a nutrient reduction program by changing your land use practices around the pond; by applying natural bacteria to eat up decaying organic matter; or by physically removing the decaying organic matter from the pond.
3. Apply an appropriate aquatic herbicide to kill the duckweed that is present. Oftentimes aquatic herbicides are needed for the first 1-3 years to completely eliminate all of duckweed for the future of the pond.
We have created this website to not only educate pondowners about duckweed, but to provide them with the very best tools available for cleaning up their ponds and eliminating duckweed for good! We highly recommend Vertex Aeration Systems for aeration, White Cap for herbicide treatments, and Cygnet Bio Blend for nutrient reduction. Please feel free to CONTACT US with any questions you might have about your pond or any of these products
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