I have a one acre (approx), Central Iowa pond and am getting ready to restock after a major fish kill last summer. There are HBG that survived -- all the big ones died off last June during two weeks of 100 degree heat. There is nothing else in the pond other than the remaining HBG. I am wanting to create a nice family pond that we can fish. The fish farm I spoke to suggested the following:

100 LMB 3", 200 HBG 3", 200 regular BG 3", 50 Black Crappie and 15# if FHM.

I am hoping a few of you could offer your thoughts and opinions regarding these quantites and choices.

Regarding the BC, I get mixed reviews on them from what I read regarding ponds that are 1 acre in size and over population. Some say it is a problem and others say it isn't. With this being said, I only went with 50.

Thanks for any suggestions and opinions.

dmrsmj23....

I'm kind of shocked that a fish supplier would suggest a plan like that. It doesn't look like he is "just" selling fish, because he is not having you stock anything in enough numbers to feed either the Bass or the Crappie, let alone both...and I would not want to stock a single crapie in a one acre pond...they will overpopulate eventually...even with heavy fishing.


Have you considered lowering the level of the pond considerably and using hydrated lime to kill off the remaining fish? I can virtually assure you that if there were more than HBG there before, there still is....in unknown sizes and numbers. One 2 pund bass may become a 3 pound bass shortly after your restocking.....

Your bass need at least 5 bg for each bass to have barely enough forage....there was no need to add HBG at all as the bg will spawn with the Fx HBG still there...

We see this a lot. Fish farmers being asked to be pond managers. Some just try to sell fish, others are just put in the position to answer a question(s) they're not really knowledgeable about.

What do you want from this pond? Your goals, are they bigger bluegill, bigger bass, a little of both? This will help you decide quantities to stock.

I hear ya, I wish I would have know about this site before I stocked my pond. Great info on here!

Thanks for all the replies guys. I appreciate it. I didn't feel right about the suggestions I was given by the fish farm.
Rainman, I have to be honest, I really don't have the time or energy right now to drain and kill. I know it is probably the best thing to do, but now is not a good time. I need to figure out the easiest way to do the best for my pond with the limited time I have at the moment. I am really hoping to figure out the best way to just restock with the right species at the right quantities.
Omaha, to answer your question, I want my cake and eat it too. I'd like nice bass and nice blue gill. Can I do that? Really, I just want a nice pond that my family can fish and enjoy for years to come.

Thanks for your feedback.

Rainman, I forgot to mention, there have never been any bass in the pond. My neighbor stocked the pond with HBG a couple of years ago. So, I am not worried about that big ole bass hanging out eating all my babies..... Not sure if this changes anything or not.

Thanks.

We all do what we can on our ponds.....our goals tend to flucuate with our abilities. Knowing you don't have the time or inclenation to put in a lot of management effort is great..it helps to select a stocking plan based on your goals, not our own with better input from others here.

Has it already been stocked?

Really think about your goals (both short and long term). A little longer in the pre planning makes it much better in the long run.

I have stocked perch every year, but only caught one through the ice this year. I then caught a 19 inch bass and figured out where all of my perch went. In hind sight I wish I had done a different plan than what i did. I rushed in and am now working on correcting it.

Personally, I would stay away from the Crappie. I love to fish for them, but they will overtake the pond and you will have to start over in a few years. We have a 10 acre pond in our neighborhood and the crappie have taken over it since they spawn much earlier than anything else and then out eat the later spawners.

Not yet. I was just wanting to get on it soon. Based on my research on this board and other sites, I was considering the following plan:

100 LMB
1000 regular blue gill (maybe 800 regular blue gill, and 200 redear)
20# Fathead Minnow

Whatcha think?

Yo Coach, where in the heck have you been? We've missed ya, amigo. How far are the Wolverines gonna make it this year?

Hey DMRS

A one acre pond is easy to drain down a way, add hydrated lime which is cheap, and kill off the remaining fishery. If your goals are to create a fishery your family can enjoy for years to come, strongly consider the option of draining and liming. Also, when you drain you have a chance to work on the pond some, like, adding some depth to avoid to help avoid another summer kill due to heat. Maybe it's as simple as getting a backhoe in there and making a few 15' holes.

I think your stocking numbers for a balanced pond [good LMB, good BG] are close.

I'd personally back off the LMB to 75, BG to 750, and add 200 RES. Think about a forage species in addition to your FHM which won't ever establish a sustained population. GSH are an option with upside and downside. Also don't forget native crayfish and potentially grass shrimp.

I agree with the others to avoid stocking BCP. If you must have them, catch them on their beds over the next few years and select single sex fish. Just my thoughts - can't wait to see your progress!

I agree with what was said about the Crappie. Don't.

Biggest question that I have is this:

If this upcoming summer is the same as the last one, what steps have you taken so you don't experience a fish kill again?

My point exactly...if forecasts are correct we're looking at another year of drought and high heat for NE and IA. Better correct the conditions that led to the original kill - add some depth!

My fish kill happened last year because my aerator was not working during the hottest two weeks of the year, that is when all my fish went belly up. Also, I think the depth of the pond should be OK. At full capacity it sets around 16 feet in the middle. Presently I think it is around 12+ feet. Last year it got down to about 10 feet by mid August. I feel pretty good about restocking and letting the aerator get me through the year this coming summer.

Ah HA! The missing piece of the puzzle.

Aerators are critical in low water times. Even more so when temps are at either end of the extremes, hot or cold.

Ok, since we are talking about the aerator, I have more questions. I moved here less than two years ago and my neighbor installed the aerator on the pond we share. He doesn't know any more about it than I do, so here I am. The model aerator is a Robust-Aire Aquatic Aeration System. He has had the unit running all winter. Is this bad? The pond never froze over but I was concerned about cycling in too much cold air from the outside during the dead of winter. On the flip side, after the fish kill last summer, he ran the aerator constantly -- never turning it off. So my question is should we be running the aerator 24/7/365? Is it hurting anything? Just wasting electricity?

Thanks.

In the winter the air going into the pond should be thru a diffuser that is placed between 1/4 to 1/2 the total depth of the pond, not the summer one that is in the deepest portion of the pond. Fish need a warm (relatively speaking) water refuge for the winter.

I prefer 24/7 rather than cycle it.

Esshup,
What is the benefit for running the aerator in the shallow portion of the pond in the winter? I shut mine down this winter I have just started turning it on this week increasing the time daily until I feel comfortable going 24/7. If it makes sense I will leave it on next winter- by the way I live in southern Indiana and this year we had ice on the ponds less than 25% of the time and on;y a few days thick enough to fish @ 4 in.

Esshup, why increase the time daily to get to 24/7?

Well, I read on this forum that the best way to start up the aerator in the spring was to start at 15 min a day and double the time each day for about a week or so. If you turn it on 24/7 in the beginning you could pollute the enter water column with toxins.
Esshup please correct me if I have misspoken or typen

I'm not advocating turning it on immediately 24/7 because not all ponds are the same, and not all pond owners monitor water temps AND O2 levels in their ponds. The bottom diffuser will homogenize the water temps in the pond, and bring O2 to the bottom with the mixing of the water column. If the water column is already mixed, then why not?

If water temps are warming up, and the surface water temp is in the low 40's with sufficient O2 at the pond bottom, I've started the summer diffuser up and not shut it off without any problems in my pond. Northern pond, not too long after ice off, O2 levels are good all the way to the bottom of the pond.

Running 24/7 puts less strain on the compressor. If the aeration system is designed for "X" amount of pond turnovers in a day, means that, a 24 hr day. If you can find lifting data on the home built systems, or pre-existing systems, then you should be able to get lifting rates in gallons per hour. Ponds should be turned at least once per day. Doing the calculations on the water volume in your pond can determine if running a partial day will give you enough "turns".

If you cannot find the data on your system to correctly calculate the number of turns, then I'd make the assumption that the ststem was designed to run 24/7. Not enough "turns" can actually increase the available Phosporous in the upper part of the water column, which will lead to more algae and plants growing.

kegger, you are correct if there is anerobic or anoxic water at the bottom of the pond in the spring, and the aeration system is turned on 24/7 you can pollute the whole water column.

Ted/Sue or anyone else, if I'm explaining this wrong, please correct me.