Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Types of fish to choose Just stocked a new pond in Ohio last week.

Bill and Ewest,

Thanks for the info! I had no idea that the young BG would become pelagic. I am sure that explains why I have not seen them in the shallows like the baby FHMs. The good news is that I just found a 1" long BG on a mat of FA!! It was on top of the algae along the shore. I assume that one of the non-pellet feeding bass knocked it up there and it died. How long does it take for a BG to grow to 1" under new pond conditions? The pond was very clear ( I could see the bottom in 10-11 fow) until 1 month ago and then I have had a bloom so I can see down 4-5'. Thanks for all of the help!!

seantOH

In good food rich conditions a BG can get to 1" in about 18-20 days, in lower plankton habitats it will take 21-30 days and when in plankton poor, cooler water it can take 32-45 days.

3-4 weeks on average. Thanks Bill! The pond was not real clear at the beginning of the season and then went through a very clear period for 4-5 weeks and then bloomed. It was great to find a baby BG! My guess is that the recruitment has not been great at this point because there obviously is not a large population of babies yet. Hopefully the smaller bass are getting them and the later spawns will be more productive. Thanks again for all of the great information that you have shared with me!! Take care!!

seantOH

Good news for my pond! This past spring I dropped a dead Christmas tree next to my dock in shallow water. Recently some small fish have started to relate to it in small schools. I was watching them closely tonight and apparently some of the small fish I thought were FHM are not FHM. They are actually small BG (0.5"-1") and LMB (1.5"-3"). The BG are starting to show vertical lines along their sides. The LMB bass are schooling together and some have developed a black fringe on their tail and a black line along their lateral lines.

I will still stock more FHM when they are available this Fall but it looks like my bass have some home grown food now.

seantOH

Hey seantOH, take the hint and put more trees or coverage in for your smaller fish. It gives them a better chance.