# Nitrogen problem in pond



## WV Mounty2 (Jan 26, 2018)

Has anyone had a problem with cows creating to much nitrogen in their pond causing problems for the O2 level for fish? We have a fountain to try to help but just not sure if there is anything else you can do.


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

Are the cows getting in the pond or is the problem from run-off? If the cows are getting into the pond the best solution is to fence it off. If it is run-off, you would have to live with it or change how(often) the cows graze in the run-off area.


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## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

I'm not sure how much it would help, but have you tried adding a bale or two of barley straw?

Is this strictly a too high nitrogen problem or a nitrogen is causing excessive algae problem?

I'm not sure if this applies to ponds but I'd think it would but with aquariums if you have a persistent algae problem its phosphates you need to be checking.


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## WV Mounty2 (Jan 26, 2018)

Thanks for your reply. Yes cows are always in pond so im sure they are pooping and peeing in there and there is a hill side of the pasture that runs into it as well. My uncle is the one who is worried about the nitrogen level effecting the O2 because his boy fishes in it. As far as algae the only problem wev had is duckweed and he has treated the pond for that with success. I figured there wasnt much you could do. I recommended digging it out because it is pretty silted in, that way it could hold more O2 for fish bit thats always risky becasue the person digging could go to deep draining pond. What were you saying about the bale of barley?


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

Yes, cattle will cause a pond to "silt in" pretty quickly.....and they do crap in it frequently when cooling their fescue feet in hot weather. I would fence them out and I think you will see a significant change next summer.....but you will still have a silt problem unless dredged.

Regards, Mike


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## pede58 (Oct 27, 2015)

Having built over 50 ponds in my career I can tell you that cattle absolutely destroy a pond if you want it for pleasure also. Main concern is the dam itself as the trails cattle cut tend to erode it quickly, back in the 60's we use to build cattle watering ponds which was just a pushup dam with no core and were gov funded, quick and easy to build, my dad built 24 of these in one year. The gov ponds that I was involved in were also built for cattle but had to have a hydrant plumed from the pond through the dam to the backside and cattle were not allowed into the water. Now with all that said I'd suggest an aerator.


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## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

WV Mounty2 said:


> What were you saying about the bale of barley?


Not sure why, but around here barley straw is in pretty high demand. People toss several bales into their ponds to clean algae up. I've seen mini bales of it for sale for aquariums or small ponds/water features.


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