Water spinach beds fight toxic algae blooms in ponds
Zhang S, Chen G, Dong J, Tang Y, Sha Y
Phytoremediation
If you've ever seen a pond turn pea-green and smelly in late summer, this points to a low-tech fix using floating plants you might already grow, like water spinach, to pull out the pollution feeding the bloom and even help neutralize its toxins.
Scientists tested three common floating water plants, water hyacinth, water lettuce, and water spinach, to see how well they could clean up pond water plagued by toxic algae blooms. Water spinach won by a wide margin, soaking up over 93% of the nitrogen and phosphorus that feeds algae, shifting the pond's tiny plant life away from toxic blue-green algae toward safer green algae, and hosting bacteria on its roots that help break down the algae's poison.
Key Findings
Ipomoea aquatica (water spinach) achieved the highest nutrient removal, 93.7% for both dissolved nitrogen and phosphorus.
Water spinach shifted phytoplankton community away from cyanobacteria toward beneficial green algae genera like Scenedesmus, Dictyosphaerium, and Pediastrum.
Microcystin-LR toxin accumulated mainly in plant leaves, while toxin-degrading bacteria (Sphingomonas, Novosphingobium, Pseudomonas, Serratia) colonized the roots, and all three plants showed elevated antioxidant enzyme activity indicating stress tolerance.
chevron_right Technical Summary
Floating plant beds made of water spinach, water hyacinth, or water lettuce can clean up algae-choked ponds, and water spinach did the best job, removing over 93% of nitrogen and phosphorus pollution while also helping break down a dangerous algal toxin.
Abstract Preview
Original paper
Comparative assessment of phytoremediation using Eichhornia crassipes, Pistia stratiotes, and Ipomoea aquatica floating beds for phytoplankton community restoration and microcystin-LR removal in eutrophic pond water.
Ecological floating beds (EFBs) represent a sustainable, nature-based solution for remediating eutrophic waters, with plant species selection being a critical determinant of treatment performance. ...
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Ipomoea aquatica, commonly known as water spinach or kangkung, is a semi-aquatic, tropical plant grown as a vegetable for its tender shoots. I. aquatica is generally believed to have been first domesticated in Southeast Asia. It is widely cultivated in Southeast Asia, East Asia, and South Asia. I...