well i just bought a bale of barley today and we've wrapped some up in netting and put it in our pond to help it out.
The barley only cost £1-80 for the bale , from our local farmer

This is expected in a new pond most of it will settle in time remove anything that is floating or blanket weed.

ok thanks. your lucky you live near a farm Hijuj barley straw is £7.99 for a handful in london !!!!

Great, you can buy barley straw already in nets 2"by 6" they come in packs of 2 and last about 6 months. Get them from garden centres or fish/pond shops. Itie string on mine and float on the pond when they sink I Wash them through and re use.

Thanks for the tip DRC

We just scooped off the blanket weed.Our new pond looked like pea soup for about 3 weeks...then all just settled down.The pond weed will help speed up the balance Great...try not to worry. Try to resist using chemicals....and just be patient....

If you get any frogs in your pond laying frogspawn, then leave it as the tadpoles will eat it, and plenty of it.

Don't worry BB I will not be using chemicals!!! dont believe in them when I am either growing my own food or caring for wildlife. Just wanted to know if I should leave the algae be and let the pond do its stuff or try to get it out of the pond. Haven't seen any blanket weed thank god!
I was a little upset yesterday evening, I found a dead frog behind my water butt. I think he'd been there long before I made the pond. So at least I know there are frogs around some where. I know it takes about a year to settle a new pond so will be looking for frogs next year. Really want to get the ecology right first

The Frogs and newts just arrived in my pond in the first summer Great. I do very little to my pond. But I do float barley straw bags in spring and summer.

Shouldn t take that long Great. Barley straw will do the trick but we are talking a tin bath here you should be able to scoop off algae .. and oxygenators should be able to resolve matters soon.

BB what is your new avatar? I cant quite see what it is? Oxygenators are in BB; Im sure I read that DRC advise a lady to put newspaper on the surface of the pond. Is that right DRC?

DRC in the 1st summer!!!!!!!!!!????????????? How lucky are you? wow

I think the ativar is a Butterfly Great. I dont remember saying that about newspaper as it would just turn to mush and sink? I put a garden umbrella over my pond in the very hot sun, Planting will help reduce algae as it cuts out the sun. Someone on here once said float kitchen floor tiles, I prefer waterlillies.

I dont think frogs are very far away in any garden Great, so if you add an inviting/safe pond they will appear. They always return to the pond they were born in to spawn, so I guess thats why I have lots of frogs but never frogspawn?

Oh it wasent you then! I remember some one saying lay newspaper on the pond and fold it back and the algae will stick to the paper? Ive just asked a queation about a lily and was told I cant have one not even a pygmaea lily Im sure thats not right?? Not on here somewhere else

Dont worry Great our pond was thick with algae and looked awful for about a month a small net would help and if you skim off its advisable to tip algae out by side of pond as it dries to allow any little creatures to get back in pond.

The book I mentioned suggests several dwarf waterlilies and states they are suitable for half barrels and sinks so a bath should be perfectly adequate ..
It classifies Dwarf as requiring a planting depth of 4 - 10 inches with a spread of 1 - 2 ft from this would think most would qualify ?

Cyril the Squirrel has not been around for along time so changed avatar to something a bit more sunny.Drc right its a butterfly an orangetip on bluebells.

I didnt realise it was a tin bath? as BB says scoop it out with a net and I would shade it and wait. Have you sunk the bath?

BB thanks for the info. yes DRC the bath has been sunk into the soil and plants are all around it. Havent you seen my blog.., shame on you. No Im only joking lol

I have seen your blog sorry didnt connect?

A senoir moment DRC? , no I'll stop, I'm only joking with you and cheering myself up at the same time x

I have them all the time Great and have done all my life!!! lol