Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Suggestions for existing/repaired pond

First time here and I have spent the last couple of days browsing the forum, but I still have some questions. My dad has 40 acres with a pond about 1-1.5 acres that has had some levee damage that I am currently repairing. Max depth is about 6 feet and prob averages 3 feet I would guess. I am also located in NE Mississippi. There are some bass and bream in the pond, but very few. I am moving onto the property and want to start managing the pond. It is surrounded by woods, but I am clearing the trees off the levee.

I am wanting to stock the pond for LMB and some variety of bluegill. I would like to stock the pond with some form of shad or minnows this fall, but I wanted to see if you all think I should wait till the spring? Will 1000 be enough to start with? How long would you wait before you added LMB and bluegills to the pond? I am also looking into stocking a none obtrusive crayfish variety to the pond.

Welcome to the forum!

Be perpared to get bombarded with questions. I'll start them off.

What are your goals for the pond? Will you be aerating or feeding?

What species, size (and numbers if you can) are the fish that are currently in the pond, and will you be leaving them in or killing the pond and starting over with a clean slate?

How big are the trees that are on the levee? If they are over 4" diameter, and you are removing them, are you digging out all the large roots at the same time? If not; the roots are prone to decay in a number of years down the road. That decay will probably let water follow the decay, potentially creating more levee problems for you.

Volleypc,

One more view.

If it was my pond, I'd do a little more fishing into the cooler months to get an idea of what is really in the pond. If there has been minimal fishing for several years, it is possible there are a lot more bluegill and bass than you might think. This can be a very slow time of year for pond fishing.

If that is the case, I wouldn't put minnows or other forage into the pond. I'd start a pellet feeding program. If you aren't a full time resident, I'd get a good mechanical feeder. In either case, I'd start feeding high quality feed while the water remains above about 65 degrees.

As ESSUP discussed, I'd be careful about taking trees off the levee. No, they shouldn't be there, but if they are really big, cutting them down could cause even more problems as their roots decay. Pictures would be very helpful.

As for crawfish -- do a search here on the site for a lot of ideas. They too can be good or bad.

Regards,
Ken

Thanks guys for your answers. There are 3 trees all along the front of the levee. It appears that the middle and back were left open for access. Years ago it was used to raise minnows for a guy that sold them in his store. The lake has been drained since then so the minnows will not still be in the pond.

Feeding - I don't mind just to get things going, I would like for the lake to be self sufficient other then routine maintenance throughout the year... checking PH, etc.

Aeration - everything on the property is solar powered so probably not.. at least not enough to really amount to anything. I am considering adding a shallow well with a windmill pump. While the well water will not be great for oxygen, I can at least have enough fall to get a small waterfall on some rocks to hopefully add a bit of oxygen.

As far as goals, I am not trying to raise trophy bass. I enjoy making flies and like the idea of just going out and trying different flies, maybe keeping a few fish from time to time. My main goal is just to have a healthy pond. The levee has easy access so if the roots become a problem in a few years I can easily widen the levee.