Trust me--3.5 acres is adequate for a striped bass hybrid fishery. We've seen 5kg SBH in ponds as small as 1 acre.
SBH don't care about the size of water body they're in. What they DO care about are the following parameters:
1. Oxygen. D.O. levels at a bare minimum of 3ppm and preferably 5-10ppm should be maintained year around. This is a relatively simple task in a larger body of water that isn't crowded with thousands of fish or heavily fed. Ideally the pond won't have large runoff events that carry in significant silt loads nor will it have long periods of time with snow covered ice which rob the pond of sunlight needed for photosynthesis.
2. Food. SBH love pellets. High protein fish chow that is of good quality will minimize the amount of fish waste to foul the water and give the fish good growth potential.
3. Good water quality. Minimizing the total biomass is easy to acheive with SBH because they will not reproduce in your pond. Start with fewer fish that you think you'll really need so you can assess how much B.O.D. is created by the fish and their waste. If your pond begins to experience large, long-lasting algae blooms then you may want to back off on your feeding regimen to maintain the highest water quality possible.
4. Love. SBH need nurtured. Don't crowd them, starve them or insult them. Their feelings get hurt easily. If you catch one, thank him for the good time, give him a little peck on the cheek and let him go. If necessary, compliment him on the nice battle. He may return the favor by nibbling on your line again.
