Water Lily Control

Water lilies do several things to improve the quality of lakes and ponds. Providing shade, shelter and cooler water for fish or invertebrates they also filter or detoxify the water. They grow rapidly just like many other aquatic plants especially when there is an excess of nutrients in the pond water.

Water lily control with Truxor

Water Lily Control

The lily is distinguishable by their floating leaves and white or yellow flowers. The species can be distinguished before flowering as Nuphar has oval shaped leaves and Nymphaea has a round leaf that overlaps slightly behind the stalk. Lilies can grow in up to 5m of water, but prefer around 1m to 3m. They have extensive rhizome systems and if not contained or with no control they will provide a dense covering over the water surface, which can suppress the growth of other aquatic plants. 

This problem will be more evident with warmer waters during summer months which means they need to be regularly maintained and pruned, so as not to be a disadvantage for a pond.

Our Recommended Methods

Water lily control is necessary as they can completely cover the surface in just a few short weeks reducing light penetration resulting in the decline of  fish, invertebrates and aquatic plants.

Removal via Excavation of Lily Rhizome — this is our preferred method of control as it digs out the rhizome of the plant. By removing the roots we are minimising the chance of any regrowth and also any regrowth that may occur becomes a lot easier to control.

Cutting using the Truxor T cutter bar attachment — This involves cutting the lily stems at a maximum depth of 1.7m (5ft6in) and allowing the stems to float to the surface before removing. It is a very temporary measure but allows for a quicker result. 

How Aquatic Solutions can help you with Water Lily Removal

If you’d like to learn more about how we can help with water lily control or any other weed control in ponds or lakes, contact us to discuss the areas that interest you.