Pond Boss Forums INTRO New Forum Member Introduction New small pond in Louisiana, advice please

Hello from south Louisiana. I purchased a new home a couple of months ago and have no idea what to do with the very small pond at the rear of the property.

It appears that this pond was dug decades ago to build up under the workshop slab. The pond is roughly 1200 square feet and shallow. The first couple of feet in are 6-12" deep and 4-5' deep in the center. It is completely surrounded by trees and must have been totally forgotten for the past 20-30 years.

I've cleared about 20' of trees from the bank so I can walk up and really look into it. It is full of minnows, but I don't think there are any predatory fish. There is a film on the pond...I'm guessing either pollen or rotting leaves/pine needles.

I don't know where to start. Most of the material that I've read deals with much larger ponds. Any advice or direction to reading material relevant to ponds this size would be greatly appreciated.

Welcome to PBF LP!

Here's a couple questions.

1) Any interest in expanding or deepening the pond?
2) Can you post a few pics of the pond and the "minnows?"

There are lots of threads here discussing mini-ponds. Here are a couple..

http://forums.pondboss.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=424584
http://forums.pondboss.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=312689


Again,

Welcome to PBF!

Bill D.

Hi Bill, thanks for responding. I'm not planning to expand or deepen the pond. I will post some pics in the next few days. We're still moving and I don't have my digital camera here yet, but will be sure to get some pics of the pond and catch some of those minnows for ID.

LP,
Sooner or later, someone is going to ask you, "what are your goals for the pond?" Do you like to fish? Have kids that fish? Would like to have fresh fish to eat? Want to have it for aesthetic effect? This will give you a few things to think about in the meantime. Surely, you must have some goal or idea in your mind of what potential the pond has. A minnow heavy pond leads me to believe it lacks predators (i.e. Bass, Catfish, Green sunfish...etc.). What part of south LA are you from. I grew up in Calcasieu Parish, but left LA 18 years ago and now reside in SE Texas.

Hi stickem. The place I just bought is in Slidell. My goal is 100% to harvest meat. I want this tiny pond to be my backyard fish market and provide a small fish dinner for two a few times a month.

I think the pond is closer to 1400 sq ft. With the house purchase + complete remodel I really don't want to sink much money at all into this for a while. My wife and I both really like fried and grilled catfish, so a catfish-only pond would be nice.

So, with the goal of a tiny catfish-only pond in mind, what should my first steps be? Water testing? Any recommendation on # of fingerlings I should stock? Would I need an aerator?

Hey LP,

IMO a catfish only pond will work but I think you are probably being too optimistic on how many and often you can harvest. Your pond is just a bit shy of 1/30th of an acre. If you are planning on feeding them a few catfish pellets everyday, IMO you could stock around 15 (rate of 500/acre). Aeration never hurts if you have electricity available. I would stock Hybrid Blues (HBC) if you can get them as they are supposed to grow quicker than channel catfish (CC). I would also stock at least two or 3 different sizes. That way you can have a few fish available for harvest more often. As you harvest the largest, you would restock the smallest size again.

I am not a pro, just my thoughts on the subject. Hopefully, a pro will be along soon to offer some advice.

Bill D.

Ya, I'm clueless. With only 15 fish in there, not many catfish dinners. You've got me thinking maybe some type of aquaponic flood system. I've got a nice budget for some raised beds, so if I can use a pump to flood some soilless beds they can filter the water/fertilize plants and aerate on the back end. More fish and easy gardening...right? Sounds doable, or ridiculous?

...But with 15 fish you will have a lot more catfish dinners than with no fish!