How will Daphnia help my pond?

[JV]

How will Daphnia help my pond?
What food source are they for other creatures?

[King Edward]

They're filter feeders so help to keep down levels of single celled algae, keeping the water clear. Daphnia are food for a wide range of pond creatures, including newts (larvae especially), dragonfly larvae etc. You shouldn't need to introduce them, though, as they generally turn up naturally.

[JV]

Thanks but iv had the pond for a year now and it gets green and no frogs so i need to introduce them in the weekend!

[tameblackbirds]

I introduced them to my pond as food for the taddies. My pond is very silted at the bottom but is clear on the surface.I want to remove some of the silt but never know when the best time is. I know it's not poss now. Always worry about what insects are lurking in the silt that I might kill. Good luck with your pond.

[Dogghound]

Do you have fish? or pond plants?

[King Edward]

I'd be surprised if the lack of Daphnia was causing a year-old pond to stay green. Can you describe the pond a bit more, or post a photo? In any case, even without Daphnia, there are other filter feeding crustaceans which are likely to be present.

[dampflippers]

I'm a big daphnia fan for giving a pond a quick boost and also for providing food for newts etc.

To improve your pond you need to look at alot of things:are you feeding fish? This can lead to excess nutrients in the water causing algal growth
Do you have enough oxgenators? These will use excess nutrients to grow, and give off oxygen to help water quality.
Do you have any marginals? These will also help use up those nutrients.
Do you have fish? These will eat the small creatures in the pond that help with breaking down dead plant mayerial.
Is there any shade at all on the surface? A shallow pond in full sun with no surface plants will get warmer than a deeper one, and therefore algae will grow faster.
Do you have ducks or anything that are stirring the pond up?
Did you try to remove dead leaves in the autumn or spring, or are they all rotting?
Did the cold winter kill off any of the pond plants? If so there will be an imbalance and you need to add more plants.

[JV]

Originally Posted by Dogghound

Do you have fish? or pond plants?

I have pond plants and NO fishes

[JV]

Originally Posted by dampflippers

I'm a big daphnia fan for giving a pond a quick boost and also for providing food for newts etc.

To improve your pond you need to look at alot of things:are you feeding fish? This can lead to excess nutrients in the water causing algal growth
Do you have enough oxgenators? These will use excess nutrients to grow, and give off oxygen to help water quality.
Do you have any marginals? These will also help use up those nutrients.
Do you have fish? These will eat the small creatures in the pond that help with breaking down dead plant mayerial.
Is there any shade at all on the surface? A shallow pond in full sun with no surface plants will get warmer than a deeper one, and therefore algae will grow faster.
Do you have ducks or anything that are stirring the pond up?
Did you try to remove dead leaves in the autumn or spring, or are they all rotting?
Did the cold winter kill off any of the pond plants? If so there will be an imbalance and you need to add more plants.

I do no have any fish
I have 4 plants 1 establsihed 3 small
no margionals cause i cant get them anywhere!
It is partially shaded
Too small for ducks
I always remove dead leaves in autumn and spring
A few plants were killed in the cold but i replaced them

[JV]

Originally Posted by King Edward

I'd be surprised if the lack of Daphnia was causing a year-old pond to stay green. Can you describe the pond a bit more, or post a photo? In any case, even without Daphnia, there are other filter feeding crustaceans which are likely to be present.

It is a big tub sunk into the ground
There is two bricks on top of eachother for birds and creatures to get out
1 esatblished plant 3 small ones
Natural coloured gravel at the bottom