Swell Barley Straw Maxi Bale - BOGOF

Swell Barley Straw Maxi Bale - BOGOF What is pond barley straw?Barley Straw is the perfect way of controlling blanketweed and ensuring crystal clear pond water. Not only is it effective, but it's also completely natural. Our bales are the perfect size for a variety of ponds. Each twin pack of barley straw bales come complete with net bags for easy handling and should protect your pond against algae growth for up to 6 months per bale. It's easy to use as well, barley straw extract naturally disrupts the development of each algae bloom and will destabilise blanket weed, so it can be removed through your pond filter. Try our Swell Control Blanketweed treatment which contains barley straw products, like hydrogen peroxide in liquid form, to manage existing blanket weed growth.Please note: Swell Pond Barley Straw Bale - BOGOF comes as two barley straw bales packaged together.Why should I buy barley straw?Algae can be a real problem left unchecked. Blanketweed can quickly spread over your pond and stop vital light and oxygen from getting through. It can block drainage, ruin the look of the pond and cause unpleasant odours to permeate the garden. Barley Straw is a cheap and environmentally friendly way to combat algae. As it breaks down, algae-busting chemicals are released into the water. Microbes consume the nutrients that algae thrive on too, so it stops any further outbreaks.What does barley straw do in a pond?Barley straw works by breaking down in pond water, producing a variety of chemicals that prevents the growth of algae. While these chemicals don't kill algae they send signals to the algae that tell it to stop growing, this is why barley staw is often called 'algae control' and not 'algae treatment' or 'algaecide'. This means that you shouldn't buy barley straw if your pond is already covered in algae, instead you should buy it as a preventative. If your pond already has an algae problem you should use chemical treatments to control it.How long do you leave barley straw in a pond?Once you add barley straw to your pond you should leave it in there as it breaks down. Decaying straw is what produces the barley straw products and chemicals required to control algal blooms. To make barley straw work in your pond, you should just let it decay like any other organic matter, this can take up to six months depending on weather conditions. At this point, you should add more barley straw and maintain a continuous cycle of decaying barley straw in your water.Can you put too much barley straw in my pond?Yes, too much barley straw may block out the light within your pond and prevent the growth of pondlife and plants as barley straw has a fairly large surface area. We portion out our barley straw bales to meet the needs of popular pond sizes and you can always add a little more than your pond strickly needs (as long as there is plenty of light getting through), which can be particularly important in a small pond. It's much easier to add too little barley straw, so always add a little more if you think your pond needs it.When should you put barley straw in a pond?You should introduce barley straw to your pond once it has been created and then replace the barley straw when the previous treatment has fully decayed. Barley straw decay can take as much as 6 months, however warmer weather and higher water temperature will cause decay to speed up.