I’ve been called the Weed Doctor and no, it’s not for the reason you think, it has nothing to do with marijuana. It’s because I’ve been studying lake weeds for a long time. In the distant past I searched for ways of conquering them, beating them into submission. As I learned more about the ecosystems of lakes I began searching for ways to manage them.
If you have lake weed questions, email me, the Weed Doctor, at doug@lakemat.com
In the fall, many
lakes across the country use "drawdowns" as a method of controlling overgrowth
of lake weeds. The concept is simple. By lowering water levels, lake weeds
close to shore are left high and dry and their root systems are exposed to
freezing temperatures over the winter, killing off much of the unwanted growth.
I often get the question, "How long will a LakeMat (or MuckMat) last?"
I usually answer, "We guarantee them for three years, but they'll likely
outlive us." That's a very conservative answer, so today I'm going
whole hog and give you the low down.
We've had a lot of emails and phone calls lately asking if a MuckMat®
will hold up a boat lift or shore station. The short answer is “yes!”
Once you’ve bought your nice new shore station, it’s a bummer to set it
in the lake, only to watch one corner or more sink in the muck.
Sometimes the whole boat lift sinks...bummer!
Most would say it’s size, a lake is bigger, a pond is smaller.
That’s actually wrong. From government websites to Wikipedia, the information
is wrong. The difference is actually a result of the the depth.
When you install your LakeMat® or MuckMat®, the lake weeds beneath your
Mat die off, creating dead plant matter which will be digested by
microorganisms, which creates methane which will get trapped under your
Mat causing "bubbles." These bubbles can lift an area of your Mat off
the bottom up to the surface.
The use of aquatic herbicides to treat lake
weeds has been around since the late 1940’s with discovery of 2, 4-D, (the same
stuff you use to kill dandelions in your yard).
Actually, the use of chemicals
to treat lake weeds goes back to the 1880’s when copper and sea salt were used.
Those of you cursing the unsightly algae on your lake front, take
heart. In the very near future you may be running your car on the stuff. It’s
said to be cheaper than oil and burns 28 percent cleaner.
If you are a lakefront property owner, here are three words that you
should know if you are concerned about managing the lakeweeds on your
shoreline. If you are trying to kill lake weeds by using a LakeMat or
aquatic herbicides, it is important that you understand the following
three terms.
There are dozens of common lake weeds.
They may or may not be a problem,
depending where they’re growing. Most of the native lake weeds mind
their own business, but there are several exotic, invasive species that
can literally take over a lake quickly.
(What is
all that icky stuff I’m wading in?)
All lakes
are temporary, viewed in geologic time scales. They will fill in over time,
eventually becoming wetlands and finally dry land. It is the destiny of lakes
to become good farmland. This process cannot be stopped.
