Growth characteristics of water hyacinth: an application to bolgoda lake

Abstract

Water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes (Mart). Solms) is considered as a serious pest in many lakes, irrigation canals, stagnant ponds, waterways and semi-wet areas in Sri Lanka. Bolgoda Lake has been severely affected by excessive growth of water hyacinth, which resulted in clogging of major waterways, adversely affecting navigation. This study was carried out to determine the growth characteristics of water hyacinth under influence of the physical and chemical factors in Bolgoda Lake. The parameters such as biomass, biomass production per day, phosphorus and nitrogen content in plant tissues and pH, temperature, salinity, phosphorus and nitrogen content in the water body were measured.