Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Raising Forage and Bait Renewable fhm resource

BTW, THe BG and S-cracker were all in the 2inch range when put in the pond.

I suspect the BG and RES will help keep the FHM numbers down some. They will prey pretty heavily on the fry and smaller sized FHM. You may not have quite as big a worry. Do you currently have aeration?

Yes on the air, it runs 24/7 using a 4 brick combo style that sits on the bottom.

Just my opinion, but I wouldn't be overly concerned.

See if your LCS source can get larger fish 6+". Any idea what size of bass you are stocking? If the LCS are larger then you could stock fingerling 3"-5" bass this spring. Let the bass and LCS grow up together. Other opinions?

I think that is the best solution. If you can get larger LCS, say 6" plus, you can stock fingerling LMB 2"-3" fish at the same time or shortly after. The LCS should stay bigger than the LMB's mouth for some time and allow the LCS to pull off at least one if not two spawns before the LMB would get to a size where they could feed on your original stocker LCS if ever. The LMB will actively feed on the FHM keeping them under control while not being large enough to feed on your larger LCS. The FHM will also take pressure off your first couple LCS spawns, giving them a better chance of taking hold.

Have you thought about stocking grass shrimp in your pond as well? They would also be a good food source for your BG and immature LMB... Palaemonetes paludosus which is a Florida species of freshwater grass shrimp should be found rather commonly in most vegetated waters in your area which should lead to easy collecting. A few dozen stocked now should lead to a solid population in the future, particularly if you have some vegetation already present in your pond...

CJBS: I'm liking the way you think. Ran into a temp roadblock with the supplier, will hopefully know by tomorrow evening if they can get them. I dont currently have grass growing in the pond but I did just last week plant some at the waters edge. Can the shrimp be put in b4 grass is growing? Right now nothing in the pond is over 2 inch or so.

They can, they just won't have the survival rates they would if they had a vegetation refuge. At 2" most of your BG and RES probably are too small to feed on the larger shrimp right now anyways... The larger shrimp are usually females and are often egg laden. In most parts of FL, they pretty much reproduce year round.

I think thats a great idea. There is no grass but there is several piles of rock/stone as well as chopped wood that I used to make structure piles with. Maybe they can use them until the grass gets going. there is also the 20-40 ft long trees I put in they may help a bit too.

Try placing 1 or 2 bales of hay into the shallow area of the pond. The hay will provide food and some cover for them as well.

Great tip Travis!

Thanks Travis, I dropped 5 square bales in the pond about 8 days ago just for that reason. My supplier seams to have ran to a dead end on finding the LCS. I called overtons and they wanted $275 for shipping and $1 per fish If I remember right. I just wish there was somewhere local I could get them. Nothing against overtons, i just like to keep my money local as much as possible. From the looks of my options I may have to call them back if i keep running into dead ends here.

Greg Grimes sometimes gets large LCS in his fish electroshocking jobs. He might be able to get some for you.
Check with him.

I got my fish from Overton's and although the shipping was brutal, they came lively and healthy so you do get what you pay for... But overnight shipping isn't cheap, no matter what you ship whether it be fish or anything else! So I can at least attest to the quality of Overton's fish if you have to shell out the money.

Like Bill said, Greg Grimes another member and pond management company owner in Georgia says he comes across LCS from time to time. Check with him, he's equally trustworthy...

I'm little Johnny FHM. Everywhere I go I put in a few dozen. Today a couple of Italian marble fountains I maintain and landscape. They can keep my bullfrog polliwogs company. I even got the pink or rosy red kind that would not last two seconds in the wild. I'm up to six different locations. My goal is at least 20 planted with FHM where they have a chance to survive, no predator fish. I'm sick and tired of all the hoops, shipping and everything else to get these things.

4 FHM can turn into hundreds in just a couple months... This I can attest to. Their reproductive rate when little predation is present is impressive!

Thanks guys, I'll send Greg an email. It would be nice to avoid that brutal (perfect word if I ever heard any...) overnight shipping price. That price alone was enough to make me think twice.

I have major issues paying more per fish on shipping costs than the fish itself. Even worse, I have had a box of 800 show up dead. Not from any of the great guys here, but that also happened. I open the box in front of the delivery men to verify live or dead. I have ordered 2,000 and received less than 1500.

And you can have all the warnings in bright neon glow flourescent orange and the guys will toss around fragile packages like a box of rocks and leave perishable items in the sun on a 110 degree day. Renewable is not reorderable. I already have a few sources of renewable gambusia. Better than begging from vector control. I will do my best to establish LOCAL renewable fhm's.

Well update to this. The Italian marble fountains actually worked. Bad news, I used Pinks or Rosy Reds. These fountains were initially or mistakenly stocked with Koi. Being to shallow, and no hiding places, herons and grebes ended that thought. Same birds knocked my original planting from 40 to 6. However those 6 now have dozens of little ones. I have aquatic potted plants, cinder blocks only. And they made it with gambusia. I am certain survival rate would have been better with grays. But I wanted to see where gambusia stayed and where fhm stayed in this fountain. Completely different areas and never together. I am slowly building a supply of renewable fhm. Both pinks and normal.