Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Types of fish to choose some question for a small pond in north Alabama

I have a pond about 1/4 acre or so. It was stocked about 4 or 5 years ago this spring. In my opinion it was overstocked with 100 F1 bass and 1000 coppernose bg. summer before last I was catching 3-3 1/2 lb bass regularly. I started feeding the coppernose almost everyday last summer. I have loads and loads of small to pretty big handful size coppernose bg's. last summer suddenly i was only seeing and catching bass about 1-2 lbs. a neighbor said he'd been seeing another neighbor who had just built a pond sneaking in my pond after i went to work in the evenings. so i guess he got my bigger bass......anyway, when i feed the bg i have about 5 bass, maybe 1 1/2-2 lb, that follow me around the bank and often lunge at the bg while they eat the feed on top. I'm thinking about bringing some 3+ lb largemouth from guntersville lake and put them in my pond to replace the bigger ones that apparently are in my neighbors pond now......is this advisable? i only plan on about 8 or so.... I think i have plenty of coppernose to support that many. they boil the water like crazy when feeding. also planning on bringing some big shellcracker from gville when they get on bed in a week or two. would also like some tilapia but they're expensive and I can't afford that right now. maybe next year if work picks up. anybody see a problem with my plan? i also have a good bit of filamentous algae this year...i havent checked the relative weight of the bass yet but i plan on it in a few days. I'd like big bass not really big numbers. one more question, my coppernose won't hardly bit ANYTHING since i started feeding the fish food last summer. i caught them alot when i first started feeding but after about a month they got where they wouldnt bite hardly any at all. just a few here and there....... i'm also thinking about starting to fertilize my pond. just thought of one more question/comment. last summer i bought 6 bags of cargill feed in the blue bags, on the way home it got rained on a little bit. i kept it inside the shed and it did get some mold in it but i still used it with no noticable fish problems. over the winter i noticed little worms crawling around on the bag and they put silk all over everything around the bags and would turn into tiny little flying insects. i have opened a new bag this spring and started feeding it. it had a top layer of feed that was full of the silk so i dipped it out. the feed under it looks ok. does have a little bit of powdery mold in it, and can tell it has been eaten on by the little worms a little..I'm not gonna use anymore of it. i'm gonna go buy a new bag friday and the remaining 5 1/2 bags will go to waste I guess but i dont wanna hurt my fish. so far i've been lucky i guess.... thanks for any help and advise!!

I would first do your best to keep your rude neighbor as far away from your pond as possible. It is hard to manage a pond when you don't know what's coming out of it!

If you stocked 100 F1 bass into a quarter acre pond, you probably stocked at least twice if not 4 times the number you should have if your goal is to grow large bass... I wouldn't recommend adding anymore bass. A quarter acre pond at best can maybe hold 30 pounds of bass and if fertilized you may be able to squeeze 40 pounds but that's pushing it... Manage the fish you still have properly and I think you can grow a few nice bass.

As far as introducing wild shellcrackers(RES) form Guntersville, you run the risk of introducing an unwanted parasite or disease. You can add them, but know that is a risk... Tilapia may help with the FA problem and would be great forage for your bass. A 1/4 acre pond is tough to work with when it comes to growing trophy bass, especially when you have a neighbor with sticky fingers. However, manage it the right way and you can grow a few nice sized bass...

Fertilization may help with the carrying capacity of your pond as would aeration so you may want to strongly look into both. I wouldn't add anymore bass, and be cognizant of the risks you run when introducing wild fish to your pond. Break out the land mines and trip wires and you'll be set!

thanks CJBS2003 i edited and added something about my feed so please read it again and weigh in on that lol. i have thought about the parasite thing....I won't add anything from the lake.....i did add a 5 lb bass with eggs last friday from a friends pond(with permission). i did look at it and make sure it looked healthy, I know that may not be obvious to see though....also where can i find a relative weight chart for lm bass?

See the 4th article at Greg Grimes' lakework.com

I am far from an expert in the feeding fish arena... Perhaps other who have more knowledge in that area can weigh in. I can say feeding fish moldy food isn't good. I know a lot of guys on here swear by Aquamax, so you may want to check into that brand...

silvercup is good as well

I'm gonna buy some new food friday and not use anymore of the old stuff....i looked at the chart on gregs site. Does anybody know of a good online chart I can print out to keep up with my relative weights to make it easier to keep my records?

Here is a Relative Weight Chart (Wr) you can copy and print.