Common examples of emergent plants are cattails, bulrush, smartweed and arrowhead. Mechanical Mechanical control involves physically removing plants from the pond. Hand-pulling is effective to control cattails, willow trees and cottonwood trees while they are small. Rake to remove algae and submerged vegetation from the pond, especially around a swimming area. Submerged vegetation also can be removed by pulling a chain or cable through the pond between two tractors.
Mechanical control is temporary and normally affects a portion of the pond s vegetation.
It is the least effective method and may aggravate the problem because some aquatic plants spread through broken fragments and become new plants. No single all-purpose chemical that controls all aquatic weeds exists. Proper plant identification is important for selecting the best chemical for a specific vegetation problem. Generally, chemical applications are most effective when weeds grow rapidly and have not yet gone to seed. One to two treatments usually are sufficient to control submerged vegetation, whereas one to four treatments may be needed to control algae for a season.