Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations newbie has a few questions....

Hey guys,

I found this site about a month ago and have been reading back through all the posts on both the old and new boards. I have a 7 acre pond that was built last year. Last October we stocked 2700 coppernosed bluegill and 50lbs of flathead minnows. Then yesterday we stocked 700 northern strain largemouth bass, 300 catfish, and another 50lbs of fathead minnows. The pond was built with a natural flowing ditch that runs through it(which is currently over 25' deep in water) and the edges are around 4-5' deep.

A couple of my questions are:
1. How many brushpiles should I sink in a pond this size? So far we have only sank 4 brush piles and from what I've read here that is nowhere near enough.....We have sank several cedar trees but wasn't sure how many more piles I should add. The lake has several natural and man made contours to also aid in structure.

2. I'm a little taken back by all the aerators, feed, and fertilizer stuff. What is the best method to get the most healthy, fastest growth, and overall best results from the pond? I didn't get a chance to lime the pond and don't have access to a pontoon to spread lime(also the pond is covered about 50% of the way around the pond with trees)so I can't get a lime truck very close to it. Should I go ahead and try to fertilize the pond without liming?

3. Also when can I expect to start harvesting fish from the pond? I figured that I might could start taking some bluegill from it late this summer but wanted to get everyone's opinion on this one(of course that depends upon a successful spawn).

Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks.

-lee-

Lee, a few thoughts
1. pros here say 10% of the pond should have some type of cover, so you need more.

2. aerators, feeding and fertilization each increase the carrying capacity of your pond. If your pond is going to have very little fishing pressure then none is required. But if you want more fish and larger fish some or all of these must be part of your management plan. To get a good bloom the proper PH is required. Get your pond tested but my guess is you will need 20+ tons of ag lime. Get a pro with the right equipment to spread it. Problem is it will not help your early summer bloom this year. Hydrated lime is an option but it has many drawbacks the main one being if you put in to much you have a fish kill.

3. answer to this is what you do about question number 2. Wet a line in late summer and see what you catch!

Hi Lee last spring I stocked 200 channel cats in my small pond. I use a small 1/3 hp pump feeding 30 ft of garden soaker hose to produce a good stream of bubbles and also feed a couple thousand gallons of water from my well in the form of a fountain. My cats were 4-6 inches when I put them in and by fall they were about 1 1/2 pounds. I feed daily. Mine are extremely active now put about 3 in the deep fryer last weekend and plan to harvet about 125 or so this summer and will restock 100 more next month. Bob

thanks for the advice guys....

would I possibly be better just to leave it alone and not do any of the fertilization since I haven't done any lime? I am not aware of any companies that are in my area that are capable of doing lime. I'll do some checking around to see if I can find someone.

Thanks again for the help.

-lee-

btw....i forgot to mention that this pond is out in the middle of nowhere so an electric aeriator is not an option. The nearest electrical service is probably 3-4 miles away and the pond is located around alot of trees so I think a windmill aeriator really isn't a viable option either.

-lee-

Lee
Our lake is in Ms near Oxford and we have never limed or aerated. We do fertilize and have 2 feeders and we have had great luck. According to the experts, we need lime but we get a good bloom without the lime. I have never noticed any problem with a lack of oxygen. I would suggest that you fertilize and feed the fish. Doing those two things is really not that expensive and it will add shoulders to your bluegill and boost the food chain which will add weight to your bass. I wouldn't worry about taking any bluegill out since the bass should keep them in check.
You mentioned that the lake was surrounded by trees. If they are hardwoods, it would be pretty easy to selectively drop a few large trees into the lake with a chainsaw and provide the cover that you need. Hope this helps and good luck.

doug,

I have thought about going around and selectively cutting a few hardwoods to fall into the pond....and I think that is something that'll do....but I also need some structure to put out in the middle of the pond. I think I'll probably go try to sink a few brushpiles this weekend and see what happens. Thanks again.

-lee-

Lee,

Liming and fertilizing are for increasing the pounds of fish in the pond. A one acre pond here in Georgia will hold about 100 pounds of fish (bass, bluegill, catfish) Applying feed and/or fertilzer will increase the amount to around 350 pounds of fish. It will not make fish larger. If you have an unfertilized pond that is bass heavy applying fertilizer will only give you more skinny bass, IT WILL NOT MAKE SKINNY BASS FAT.

You dont have to fertilize or feed a pond to have good fishing. You will have more fish in the pond by feeding/fertlizing and growth rates will go up in a more fertile pond but it is not necessary for good fishing.

Dont worry about testing the water for pH. The pH of a pond changes throughout the day due to the production of oxygen in the pond. You need to test for Alkalinity. this will tell you if you need lime or not. pH will fluctuate more in a pond with low alkalinity. increasing the alkalinity with lime will reduce the amount the pH changes.

Brush piles are great for concentrating fish. Dont go crazy, I have seen guys load the pond down with so much structure that it is difficult to find where the fish are. Use your common sense, put brush piles around dips, stumps, creek channels or drop offs to enchance those areas. If you are sinking single trees (like x-mas trees) I like to sink 10-15 trees in one area. One "area" of 10 tress per acre should be plenty.

There are many factors you need to consider before you fertilize a pond. Read Pond Boss and keep posting, gather as much info as you can before you make your decision. Its not a good idea to stop fertilizing a pond, so dont start until you are committed.

Shan O'Gorman
Pro Ponds

Lee -- If you drop a few hardwoods into the pond, and some are near the shoreline, consider the following. If you "half-cut" the tree, and then push it over, it will stay attached to the stump. Then, the tree will stay in place until it waterlogs, and will not float away as it might if you cut it completely through. Just a little tip.

Dave

thanks guys....

Shan I imagine that I'll probably end up putting in 6-8 tree top groups. That'll give me about 10 areas in a 7 acre pond for the fish to hide. I think that'll probably be plenty.

David that's kinda what I had in mind. I figured it would be better to "half saw" the stump to keep it close to the bank. Thanks for the info. Take care.

-lee