[mickeyboy]

.... Also intend to introduce a sturgeon

  is that a joke or are you serious

No why?
many of my friends have them without  a problem and they aren't the sort you get caviar from!!

[mickeyboy]

[/quote]

The lack of plants in your pond will contribute to the blanket weed problem as the fish waste is not being used by any plants, thus allowing blanket weed to grow rampant as it uses all the nutrients from the fish poo.

It might be worth considering adding some marginal plants to your pond that can aid nutrient absorption without hiding your fish from view too much.  Another option is to grow plants in part of your filter system to absorb excess nutrients.
[/quote]
Thanks again for all our help
Any suggestions as to what i should go for as i dont have the foggiest??
Thanks for all your help
mickeyboy

[Ma and Pa Snip]

Oxygenating plant would be more beneficial than marginal plants.  Although as foghorn-leghorn has said, marginals will absorb some of the waste nutrients through their roots.

Elodea Densa or Elodea Crispa being the commonest oxygenating plant to use. These usually come in weighted bunches and you literally throw them into the pond, they form light roots that wont penetrate your liner. They grow to the surface and provide surface cover for the pond.
Once again  if they grow to excess you just pull it out by hand, but the fish will nibble some as they like a bit of vegetable matter in their diet.
 
Subject to the size of your pond, various sizes and types of water lily are available which will also provide surface cover .

Marginal plants, vast array of choice at most good water garden centres.  Dont go overboard on purchases, most grow quite fast. If you want to do a bit of good with your pond, see if anywhere can supply you with Giant Buttercup, it has declined in the wild and planting it around your pond may well help stem its decline.

However, a warning, make sure that where ever you get any pond plants from does not supply you with a 'free gift' of strands of blanket weed attached

One to avoid at all costs Myriophyllum Aquaticum, commonly known as 'Parrots Feather'. It is a native of south america, spreads like wildfire of its own accord, is invasive and clogs up countryside water courses and natural ponds.

[Ma and Pa Snip]

Ahhh silly me, left out one big basic piece of info

When you get round to replanting any marginals or lillies in the pond DONT use ordinary soil or compost !!! it will send the Ph of your pondwater totally haywire and the fish will suffer accordingly.
Use proper aqautic planting baskets with a mixture of aquatic pea shingle and  and small percentage of aquatic compost.  No need to use too much aquatic compost in relation to the pea shingle as the plants will grow on the nutrients extracted from the pond water.

[Foghorn-Leghorn]

If you know anyone with a pond it may be worth asking if you can acquire small rooted pieces of their marginal plants - as Ma and Pa Snip has said, they will grow very fast and quickly become established.   

My mum and dad have a type of water mint - it smells gorgeous and has purple / deep green leaves.  It does grow very well but it also copes well with being cut back.  It may be worth trying to track something like that down perhaps?

It may also be worth looking at a website such as this one for a few more ideas:  http://www.wetlandplants.co.uk/

  

[Ma and Pa Snip]

Good idea on the asking friends F-L.

Most pond owners end up disposing of excess growth. Especially during the spring tidy up.


The water mint is Mentha Aquatica, grows profusely, is purely decorative and scented. Doesn't do anything in respect of oxygenation. Is Definitely NOT edible.

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It is also worth mentioning as a general comment that Water Cress that is grown in a pond should not be eaten either. Yes it is the same sort of cress that you buy via water cress farms but the risk of effects upon someones stomach are far greater because of the fish waste and snails in ponds.

[mickeyboy]

thanks greatly 4 all your help my pond is a raised pond and over a metre deep how do i plant them 
Surely the soil will wash away unless i go for a lilly which i presume also needs soil??

 

[Ma and Pa Snip]

The oxygenating plant can be put straight in the pond, as lonfg as it is weighted, if it isnt it will probably just float on the suface,  its fine roots will use any waste matter on the base of the pond to gain nutrient from.

If you plant any lillies they should go in a large aquatic planting basket, not a normal pot.
If your pond is a metre deep you would be advised NOT to plant a young lily straight to the bottom as this will make it fight to get to the surface and make it a weak plant.

Better to lower it into that sort of depth gradually.

If you do not have any planting shelves around the pond, at a metre depth forget about using any marginal plants, they dont want to be on a shelf anything lower than about 300mm maximum below the pond surface.