If you're not in a hurry to get things cooking I would do this:

Build all of the structure that you need in your pond. Plan spawning areas. Add cover for forage. Pick out some plant species that will help your forage spawn and grow. Get all of that in order first.

Then I would follow the following stocking plan. This will take a few years, but it will almost guarantee you a great fishery.

Year 1:

Lake Chub Suckers @ as many as you can catch up to 1000 per acre. Make sure that you really take the time to identify them correctly.

Mississippi Grass Shrimp @ these are almost impossible to count. You just have to have the right type of plant life for them to thrive. They are a necessity for me. They provide so much and there is no drawback to having them in the pond.

Crayfish @ 50 pounds per acre. Make sure that you have plenty of rocky cover for them. Rock piles, rip rap, cinder block pieces, are all good choices.

Mudpuppies @ however many you can find. I personally like them and think that they add some variety to your pond. They do exist naturally in northern Georgia. If you can find them you should add them. If you can't then don't worry about it.

Year 2:

Fathead Minnows @ 10 pounds per acre. These little beasts will spawn like crazy and be the base forage for your small bass. They will be eliminated quickly, but they will give your bass the boost they need to grow.

Golden Shiners @ 1000 per acre. These, like your Lake Chub Suckers, require vegetation to spawn. So, think ahead. They provide great bass forage and they also help to reduce the fecundity of bass by eating some eggs. This is actually a good thing.

Fingernail Clams @ unsure. You will probably have to find these yourself, but they will provide a good food source for some of your other forage species. Just make sure that you have the right species of clam before adding them to your pond.

I like the idea of adding certain snails to my pond to serve as a viable food source for other forage items. Some people disagree. I will let you do your own research and come to your own conclusion.

Bullfrog Tadpoles @ a few hundred per acre. They will find their way in naturally, but if you add them you can be certain that they will be there.

Year 3:

Threadfin Shad @ these come in by the load. I'm sure that half a load would cover your two acre pond pretty well. These are prime bass forage and if you're in an area where they won't winterkill I couldn't imagine having a bass pond without them.

Redear Sunfish @ 200 per acre. These guys really are a niche kind of fish. Your bass will eat them, and they will feed in a different part of the food chain than your bluegill.

Bluegill @ 1000 per acre. These will eventually be the staple of your bass' diet. You can use the Northern variety or Coppernose. If your water stays warmer year round Coppernose would be the better choice.

F1 Largemouth Bass @ 50 per acre. These would be my choice in your area. If you do everything else right you should get a good combination of fish that reach large size and fish that are fairly easily caught.




Georgia is not a state that allows you to stock tilapia in ponds so those are out.

Rainbow trout make great winter forage for largemouth and you could certainly stock a few hundred seasonally.

You may also want to consider using a mechanical feeder to help feed your bluegill. They will readily accept feed and this will help them reproduce and grow to a size that makes them fun to catch and great to eat.

Channel catfish would probably be an option for you, especially if you decide to feed your fish. I wouldn't stock more than 100 cats in your 2 acre pond. They will compete with your bass to some degree for food and they do get rather large. If you really want them then you can stock them, but if you would enjoy just bass and bluegill fishing then you can leave them out and that is all the better.

Sorry for the long winded response, but I dream some day of having a southern pond and I have done a lot of thinking about it LOL.

Reality is constantly ruining my life.