Good day to all. I am new to these forums. I read them all the time but this is my first post. I have 5 acres in SW Ohio and getting ready to dig a 1 acre pond. I have read everything I can to educate myself from building the dam and pond to soil testing and fertilizing. Structure to aquatic plants. Everything I read says test the soil and water so if needed you can lime before the pond fills. Soooo Over the last 2 days I talked to my county water and soil people and the county biologist "pond guy" along with 2 separate pond management companies in my local area and everyone of them said... and I quote " No need to test the water or the soil because the PH is what it is and limimg it is a waste of money because it will quickly change back to what is was" I also asked about fertilizing a new pond for a plankton bloom to get everything going and everyone of them said "No one around here get their ponds fertilized." I couldnt believe what I was hearing. I feel like all the research was for nothing and everyone just digs a hole, throws some fish in and crosses fingers. Bottom line is I am getting no answers from anyone and now Im nervous about doing the pond. I want to do it right. We have dug 3 test holes to 14 feet and have perfect clay so that hurdle has been cleared. I still plan on testing the soil and liming if needed. As far as PH goes I have read to retest every 3-5 years and reapply as needed. Any other recommendations? Thanks in advance.