My 0.2 acre pond currently has approximately 16 largemouth bass, 100 bluegills, and 5 channel catfish. There are many fathead minnows for them to eat plus I feed them twice per day. Everything seems fine so far.

I was advised to add 25 hybrid sunfish next summer. I also wonder if I can add 2 hybrid striped bass for variety. Do you think it is a good idea to do either of these things and is there another fish species I may consider adding for variety?

I live in central Indiana.

Fred Minnich

Fred, Welcome to the forum! There is getting to be quite a few hoosiers joining the ranks.

I don't see any reason why you couldn't add those fish.

Hey Fred,

Sounds like a fine pond. We on the forum love pics, so post 'em if you got 'em.

Also, just a question. Is there any reason you want hybrids? The forum has found that bluegill grow just as big as hybrids without the negative reproductive generations. (When hybrids spawn they produce inferior offspring)

Fred welcome to PB. You have lots of choices. A few HSB would be a good option just be sure the size at stocking is big enough to avoid LMB predation. I would skip the HBG and add a few adult male BG to the mix. A few of the others that may work if stocked at a size big enough to avoid predation are RES , PS , YP , WE and a host of minnows/forage types.

Hi Fred, welcome to Pond Boss. Thanks for joining in a posting, and as Mikey said post some photos of your pond, it's fun and profitable.

Another Hoosier. Welcome Fred!

I wouldnt add 25 hybrid bluegill because your were advised to, or that your pond needs em, but it YOU want them you can stock them into your situation no problem. They will take to the fish food very aggressively and you should have no problem growing them into 3/4 lb fish relatively quickly.

In regards to the hybrid striped bass, you can add as many of those into your pond as you can afford (or budget for) to feed. But also make sure your water quality is superb if you plan on holding more fish than your natural carrying capacity. For every HSB you stock, you want to add 3 lbs of food per season to your existing feeding plan. A great number to start with is 12 for your pond. Then you can choose in the future if you want to continue stocking them or just catch em out and eat em!

That's good information. Is that all? I would think it's more than that per fish, but I don't have any information to base that on.

Its a good rule of thumb that I start with, to implement the HSB into an existing population. You can definitely feed more or less depending on your goals and lake conditions.

So far I have no hybrids in my pond. The person who supplied my fish was the one who suggested I add 25 hybrid sunfish so they don't over-populate the pond. I thought hybrids can't breed so it sounds like a good idea to me. As for the hybrid striped bass, that was my idea. I know they will become the sharks of the pond so I don't want them to breed.

Thank you for the very precise information. As long as I am asking experts, perhaps you can give me your opinion on just how many of everything I should add to my 0.2 Acre pond.

Large mouth bass(I already have 16 that are about 7 inches long.)
Channel catfish (I already have 5 that are 6-10 inches long.)
Bluegills (I already have about 100 that are 3-5 inches long.)
Hybrid sunfish: to be determined
Hybrid striped bass: I have been told 12. Does everyone agree?

I was given instructions to add an additional 3 pounds of feed per hybrid striped bass stocked. How much feed is required per LMB, per bluegill, per catfish, per sunfish? Also, can you recommend a small fish feeder for this purpose? I would want a mechanical feeder to sit on the shore and throw feed in a small arc about 20 feet or so. I am currently throwing feed by hand. This is fun but I am not always home.

Lastly, can you recommend a best fish food to use? My bluegills and catfish love the food but my bass ignore it in favor of the fathead minnows.

Thanks for your input.

I can't give you an answer to the amount of food to use. I've seen the statement "feed the amount that they can consume in 15 minutes". I switched from Tractor Supply "generic" floating fish food (both the 20# bag of the smaller pellets and the larger pellets of floating catfish food) to Purina AquaMax Carnivore 500 and 600 this year. The fish seem to like the food better, and they definately grow quicker.

Search here for a local AquaMax dealer

For a feeder, there are many options. For directional feeders, it all depends on what you want to spend. I have had good luck with the AquaPro ADF75, while some people here haven't had good luck. I haven't heard of anyone having trouble with their Texas Hunter feeders. Those are the two most talked about feeders. Sweeney makes feeders as well. I'm positive there are others, but those are the 3 that come to mind right now.

I think stocking 12 HSB annually would be good, maybe a couple less. That is if you stock every year.

As far as feed goes. I am far from an expert in that subject. However, I am curious, were your LMB feed trained when you stocked them? If not, they may or may not feed train themselves... With a lot of FHM to eat, they probably never will. I suspect those FHM won't last much longer.

I would add 12 HSB at 6 inches and some FH but no more LMB , no HBG , CC are up to you but not many at a time. Purina Gamefish Chow (multi sizes in each bag) will work for all of the fish involved and so will AM (one size per bag). Your LMB may not eat fish food or a few may learn to do so. The 15 min rule is a good one.

I assume my large mouth bass were feed-trained and probably on the same feed that the fish dealer sold me. I really don't know however. The bass could be seen hunting minnows in packs all summer long. That was fun to watch but the minnow population dwindled as we got into fall, that is unless the minnows swam into deeper water where they could not be seen.

I expect the minnows did their job and were converted into protein.