Anyone found a good surface cover plant?

Discussion in 'Water Gardening' started by Outlander, Mar 16, 2018.

  1. Outlander

    Outlander Gardener

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    Hi all

    In my previous fish pond I had a large amount of floating Pennywort. It was given to me by a work colleague and it was excellent for covering the surface. It grew very quickly but I just used to cut it back every few weeks in the summer.

    I have since moved house and now have a new pond but I am struggling to find a decent plant to cover the surface. Pennywort has now been banned from sale in the UK. I have tried several creeping plants (can't remember the names off hand) but they have failed to increase in size.

    I do have a nice Lily which looks great but obviously it dies back in winter leaving the surface exposed and therefore the water turns green in Spring, despite having a filter and UV filter.

    Has anyone discovered a vigorous surface plant? I wish I had taken a bagful from my old pond.
     
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    • ricky101

      ricky101 Total Gardener

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      Hi,

      Usually find pond Mint and Forget Me Not very fast growers producing dense matts of roots that need a good cut back every so often, though they can look a bit messy compared to the nice leaves of a lily.

      Have you considered using one of the many anti algae products in spring to stop the algae blooms ?
       
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      • Outlander

        Outlander Gardener

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        Hi ricky

        Thanks for the reply. I must admit, I have never tried any treatments. I suppose I got used to my previous pond just looking after itself because the balance was right. My garden now gets a lot of sunlight despite being North facing so the green multiplies quickly.

        Thanks for the suggestion of water mint and Forget me not. I shall look into those.
         
      • luciusmaximus

        luciusmaximus Total Gardener

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        I had Watering in a container pond. It smelt wonderful but I think it might get somewhat rampant if left to it's own devices.
         
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        • Outlander

          Outlander Gardener

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          Hi Lucius

          sorry did you mean Water mint?
           
        • luciusmaximus

          luciusmaximus Total Gardener

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          :oopss: predictive text. Yes, water mint.
           
        • Clare G

          Clare G Super Gardener

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          I don't know of a floating plant that will cover the surface year-round. Frogbit is very pretty - like a miniature water-lily - but sinks to the bottom in the winter and won't re-emerge till spring. Ditto water-soldiers. There's water hyacinth too - that spreads fast in warm water, but will be killed off altogether by frost.
           
        • Outlander

          Outlander Gardener

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          Yes, that's why I liked the Pennywort because it was around all year and did a great job of cleaning the impurities from the water. Sometimes it was completely frozen solid but still survived. There were no flowers so it wasn't particularly pretty.

          I have even tried Freecycle to see if anyone has any they want to get rid of. Perhaps I might have more luck in the summer when people will be removing it by the bucket load.
           
        • Ned

          Ned Evaporated

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          Water cress does well in my pond, has stayed green and helps to keep the water clear. :)
           
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          • noisette47

            noisette47 Total Gardener

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            I have Parrot's Feather, Myriophyllum. It's suitably invasive but can be pulled out fairly easily. That's probably banned in the UK as well, now?
             
          • Outlander

            Outlander Gardener

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            That looks quite similar to what I had. One to consider I think. Thank you
             
          • Outlander

            Outlander Gardener

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            Thank you. That looks quite nice actually.
             
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