Majorbloodnok
Seedling
Hi, all; forum noob here.
Having just installed a small preformed liner pond to replace a duckweed-infested concrete-lined hole I inherited, I'm now on the learning curve trying to understand different aquatic plant species. The idea is to create a wildlife garden that can better support the newts and frogs that were struggling in the old, stagnant water, and to encourage a wider range of pond life at the same time.
Now, from the research I and my family have done, we realise the pond needs something to oxygenate the water, something sticking out for the dragonflies and so on, some water cover and something to give future tadpoles etc. a bit of shelter. As a result, we've got a minature bulrush, a water lily, a water soldier and some myriophyllum brasiliensis - all recommendations from an aquatic plant retailer (not one of the major chains, but he seemed fairly knowledgeable, and I wasn't risking a fortune if he proved a bit useless).
Now, I've been reading further and found all the stuff about myriophyllum aquaticum being banned for sale by UK plant centres, so my conscience is pricking me. I realise what I've bought doesn't have that name, but I was concerned enough to try to track down the details further, and that's the reason for this meandering long post. Firstly, I've found spp. brasiliensis isn't a true botanical species name - just a trade name - but I can't find anywhere on t'interweb that definitively states what the real species is. I have found several very strong hints that it is a red-stemmed cultivar of spp. aquaticum, which is worrying, but I've also found one or two implications that it is a lower impact species instead. Which to believe if no-one will tell me exactly which species it is?
Secondly, if M. brasiliensis is indeed M. aquaticum in disguise, how is it that it is still available for sale at almost every aquatic plant retailer I've visited? One of the articles I found was an American scientific study identifying different myriophyllum species for sale by their genetic profile and concluding that sale under a different name was effectively a loophole to allow continued supply of invasive species. If that's happening in the US, could that be the case in the UK/EU as well?
I know this post is a lot to read through, so thanks if you've got this far. I'd be really grateful, though, if anyone could provide some real concrete info about this stuff. I should point out that I'm not after simple reassurance (i.e. replies that simply say "don't worry, that species is fine"), but rather pointers to further reading. Of course, if any of you are biologists or have first-hand professional knowledge, I'll happily take any crumbs you can throw my way too.
Thanks a lot for reading.
Having just installed a small preformed liner pond to replace a duckweed-infested concrete-lined hole I inherited, I'm now on the learning curve trying to understand different aquatic plant species. The idea is to create a wildlife garden that can better support the newts and frogs that were struggling in the old, stagnant water, and to encourage a wider range of pond life at the same time.
Now, from the research I and my family have done, we realise the pond needs something to oxygenate the water, something sticking out for the dragonflies and so on, some water cover and something to give future tadpoles etc. a bit of shelter. As a result, we've got a minature bulrush, a water lily, a water soldier and some myriophyllum brasiliensis - all recommendations from an aquatic plant retailer (not one of the major chains, but he seemed fairly knowledgeable, and I wasn't risking a fortune if he proved a bit useless).
Now, I've been reading further and found all the stuff about myriophyllum aquaticum being banned for sale by UK plant centres, so my conscience is pricking me. I realise what I've bought doesn't have that name, but I was concerned enough to try to track down the details further, and that's the reason for this meandering long post. Firstly, I've found spp. brasiliensis isn't a true botanical species name - just a trade name - but I can't find anywhere on t'interweb that definitively states what the real species is. I have found several very strong hints that it is a red-stemmed cultivar of spp. aquaticum, which is worrying, but I've also found one or two implications that it is a lower impact species instead. Which to believe if no-one will tell me exactly which species it is?
Secondly, if M. brasiliensis is indeed M. aquaticum in disguise, how is it that it is still available for sale at almost every aquatic plant retailer I've visited? One of the articles I found was an American scientific study identifying different myriophyllum species for sale by their genetic profile and concluding that sale under a different name was effectively a loophole to allow continued supply of invasive species. If that's happening in the US, could that be the case in the UK/EU as well?
I know this post is a lot to read through, so thanks if you've got this far. I'd be really grateful, though, if anyone could provide some real concrete info about this stuff. I should point out that I'm not after simple reassurance (i.e. replies that simply say "don't worry, that species is fine"), but rather pointers to further reading. Of course, if any of you are biologists or have first-hand professional knowledge, I'll happily take any crumbs you can throw my way too.
Thanks a lot for reading.