Aquacide Blog — aquatic weed killer

Pickerelweed (Pontederia cordata) is an emersed aquatic weed that grows 3-4 feet tall. Leaves are large and shiny with a heart-shaped base. Each leaf has very fine veins is attached toon its own stem in clusters. Pickerelweed is easily recognized by its beautiful 4” spike of blue-purple flowers. Each flower has 6 petal-like parts united below into a tube.  Flowers bloom from June through November and attract insects, bees and butterflies. Pickerelweed reproduces from seed & rhizomes rooted in the mud. Control methods: 1)  Aquacide Pellets are a 2,4-D based, systemic aquatic weed killer that is best-applied early spring as new...

Bladderwort is a free-floating, fresh water, carnivorous lake weed with over 200 species located throughout the world. Bladderwort is usually found in quiet, shallow, bog-like acidic waters. The main stem has 4-10 delicately branched lateral leaves that give it a very lacy appearance. The main part of the weed lies beneath the surface and will go unnoticed until it rises to the surface in the late Spring early Summer. Once at the water surface the weed sends up small attractive yellow flower. This flower has lip-like petals that resemble Snapdragons. Bladderwort is named for its tiny bladder-like structures located throughout its branched...

The ongoing battle against aquatic weeds on Kenosha County’s inland lakes is getting tougher as one of the most invasive species is developing an herbicide-resistant strain, and ongoing drought changes the landscape of the lakes. Managing weed growth on lakes is the primary focus of the associations that work to care for inland lakes like Camp Lake and Paddock Lake. Without artificial controls, the lake weeds — especially invasive species like Eurasian watermilfoil — spread in thick mats, making it difficult for boats to move through the water. The Eurasian species first showed up in the United States in about...

Once a clean lake in the 1980s, Squaw Lake in Oxford Township is slowly being taken over by Eurasian Milfoil.  Thick beds of Eurasian Milfoil now blanket most of the lake bottom. The lake is shrinking because the shore is thick with weed growth.  Squaw Lake was once used for water skiing and swimming, kids don’t swim there anymore. Eurasian Milfoil spread from boat propellers chopping fragments and raking it free and dumping fragments back into the water.  Eurasian Milfoil has the ability to root from fragmentation so new  colonies developed from just one small stem. Mechanical harvesting does not...

Brazilian Elodea (egeria densa) was introduced to this country about 100 years ago.  It was an attractive oxygen producing plant primarily sold as an aquarium plant.  It can now be found in 40 States including Hawaii. It is an aggressive lake weed, very similar to both American Elodea and Hydrilla.  All three are submersed and rooted to the lake bottom.  Leaves of Brazilian Elodea have minute teeth not visible by the naked eye.   It spreads primarily by floating fragments that simply re-root.  It does not use seeds or tubers.  Stems are long and slender and rarely branch.  Each leaf is...