Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Raising Forage and Bait Forage for a Central Ohio Pond

FHM are too small for larger LMB to flourish on (too much energy expended per bite vs. the returns). They are great for the smaller LMB to get a good jump start on life. LMB can eat out a population of FHM.

GSH are good, but they tend to habit more open water, where LMB tend to stick closer to cover. They get to a larger size (up to 10") and they are much better then FHM for the larger LMB.

The RBT are great forage for LMB, but expensive because they won't spawn in a pond. They won't live in warmer water that the LMB flourish in, but as you said, are high in fat content and are the shape that make them easy to go down.

BG is the favorite forage for LMB by pondmeisters because they inhabit the same areas of the pond that LMB do, prefer almost the same temperature as LMB, and spawn prolifically (lots of forage, although they can overrun a pond).

I'll bet that if you look closely at the lakes in Ca. that push out the biggest LMB, you'll see that the trout are stocked in the cooler months, and the waters also have a good population of BG and RES.