Hornwort in a Temperate/Coldwater pond?

[WhistlingBadger]

Hey, everybody. Can hornwort grow in a zone3-zone 4 pond? I need some floating plants in there to combat a Green Slime Plague of near-Biblical proportions. Something fast-growing, tough, hard to kill. And it has to float, because the water level in my pond fluctuates hugely, which rules out water lilies, cattails, and some of the other usual suspects.

Thanks!

Tom

[Compass]

Not sure about hornwort, but anacharis and parrots feather are good if you can get them. You say your pond fluctuates a lot, as long as it stays wet you could add some Iris ssp. I have Louisiana Iris and I think Japanese Iris is another that does best in boggy situations. They will thrive in standing water just the same. Not sure how they would hold up to your temps vs mine but they are very hardy.

[Compass]

Another thing to consider. If you have any local water ways like rivers or lakes you can check to see what grows in them and get some of that. Though check with local laws before transporting any water plant. I know here I'd get the death penalty for moving hydrilla.

[WhistlingBadger]

I have thought about anacharis, too. Maybe I'll try both and see what takes.

My pond is not directly connected to the local waterways, so the Game and Fish aren't too concerned with me, for example, stocking it with goldfish (a BIG no-no for any locally connected body of water). So I'm not too worried about invasives.

It is about 35' across, 8' deep when full, fed by an intermittent irrigation ditch. I think someone upstream from me has either put in a feedlot or started fertilizing their hayfield, because last summer I had a HUGE algae bloom. This had never happened in ten+ years of living here, but it has already started up this spring.

The water level fluctuation is caused by the intermittency of the ditch, combined with a leak in the pond liner about halfway down. So parts of the pond vary from high-and-dry, sometimes for several weeks, to being under 3' of water. Finding a plant that can handle both extremes is a bit of a challenge, needless to say.

So, I need something that will function as a gigantic nutrient sponge, that I can just rake out if it gets too thick. Thanks for the ideas, Compass. Any others would be appreciated. I have a bunch of hornwort that is trying to take over my 55, and I've heard it does well in cool waters. Any other ideas?

T

[Compass]

Get a hold of hydrilla haha you'll never see your pond again! Let alone the algae. lol I see now what you mean though, might as well toss in some hornwort and see what happens. Heck, throw in all three, may the best man win.

[Sandz]

Hornwart survived 20deg freezes here in Fl over the winter but im zone 8 - Just to be honest though, when it gets cold, get a tupperware bucket and put a few cuttings in it and it will grow thick over the winter inside. That stuff you cant kill.