Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations new pond water

My two new ponds are now full of water, and I recently placed the recommended number of forage fish in each pond. My concern is that the silt has not settled very much in either of the ponds. The water is murky. I read in the latest "Pond Boss", that one person, with the same problem, was told to add gypsum. Is gypsum the same as lime? Also, I was told that adding a little hay into the water will help clear the water. Any suggestions or comments? As always, thanks for the help.

When my pond filled it was also murky but after getting the grass started around the edges it is now the color that I was looking for. I might suggest that you give it some time before you do anything to it and it might just suprise you. Plus the fish I stocked in mine didn't mind the lovely orange color of the great North Alabama clay!

Bob

Marty,
Lime and gypsum are two different materials. Lime is calcium carbonate, gypsum is calcium sulfate.
Suspended solids is common in new ponds, especially around disturbed soils. Be sure to vegetate bare soils.
Then, if your pond doesn't clear by itself, consider an amendment.
Your forage fish will do just fine in the meantime.

Bob,

You say be sure to vegetate bare soils. My NRCS agent has told me not to worry about it. I'm digging a pond in a coastal field, and was told the topsoil will establish coastal bermuda on the dam, and there is no need to worry there.

Do you recommend planting some sort of grass in the "bowl" to cut down on turbidity? It is an excavated pond.

I've never been able to prevent turbidity by vegetating the bowl. Vegetation is to prevent or minimize erosion.

I sowed my entire basin with oats and wheat when it was completed. It really cut down on sediment washing into the basin and filling it in. My water never really got turbid filling. You would have thought it would too. Got 8 inches of rain in 3 days and filled completly. My Missouri Private Lands Conservationist told me the organic matter left from the decaying oats and wheat would help my forage base get a jump start. Seems to have worked pretty good. Oat and wheat seed is cheap...might give it a try.

I would like to add that, from my experience with a new pond last year, I would highly recommend seeding the entire bowl if possible before filling, especially if you are pumping the water in, as I did. In my case, right after the pond was dug, we had four hurricanes blowing thru Florida. I seeded the banks and perimeter with a mix of argintine bahia and brown top millet right after the equipment was out the driveway. In retrospect, I should have seeded the bowl as well, and heavy on the millet. The storms did not do any damage, and did not drop a great deal of water, what they did do was drop a large amount of water in a very short time, which caused a lot of erosion on the banks down into the pond. So, whether I could have prevented what I have now is 20-20 hindsight, but I would make every attempt to stabilize the entire disturbed area with some kind of quick germinating seed before filling.

That's my two cents, and I'm sticking to it.

Tom Parker

One more point, if I had too do it again, I would not start filling the pond, assuming a well is the primary filler, until the entire bowl was sprouting some kind of annual grass too hold the slopes......that gives you the ability to control what is happening with the banks, the grades, the slopes, etc. Because, once the water is in, the pond is stocked, the rim is established and seeded, the dock is built, the aeration system is in place, the background plantings are done, etc, etc,.....that is a lousy time to think about removing all of the washed in dirt to get your 3:1 or 2.5:1 slopes at the banks versus the wheelchair ramps that I've got.

Right now my only option is too drain the pond by about one half and dress up the slopes which will probably cost about what the pond cost to begin with. In other words, I will probably live with it.

I'm throwing it in so maybe somebody will get a helpfull hint.

Tom Parker

Wow...I figure I'm building a Texas stock tank, and just hope the cows don't impact it too much. But, seriously, I think I'll throw some Rye seed around once it is dug....if this rain will ever stock.

I appreciate the input.