Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Creating the food chain Stocking minnows

Hey, Shaef, welcome to Pond Boss! Why don't you also post a quick hello in the New Member section of the forum just as a way of intro.

Don't ever worry about asking a question that's already been asked - as far as I can tell, there aren't too many original questions left anyway (kind of like we say in aviation - there are no original causes for crashing an airplane. They've all been used before, so learn from them!). Most of us still learn from seeing questions asked and answered several times, so fire away. That said, though, there is more information here than you can shake a stick at, so take your time and read, read, read! Of course, use caution. Diving into the depth of this forum can lead to loss of interest in everything else in your life, so be diligent!

As for your question, I am also a newbie pond owner so I don't really know the best answer for your situation. If there's only 1.5 feet of water right now, though, you may want to wait a little longer before you start adding fish, though you can certainly add them before you hit full pool. At that depth, thy could be sitting ducks (pretty bad metaphor use there!) for birds and other predators and you may also run into unforeseen issues with the pond holding water or water quality that would need to be addressed before you want fish in it. Also take a look at some of the threads on cover so your new additions will have some hiding places.

Good luck, keep us posted, and share some pics and a more detailed description of your place and your goals.