Woodcrafter - I assume you put in 2-3 inch CNBG and RES. If so, the CNBG will probably not yet be ready for pellets. Until they get a little bigger, they will probably feed on water-borne plankton and other pond critters. Generally, RES will never take commercial feed. They'll be happy eating things already in the pond. They are very important to keeping grub and snail populations down, which will keep your bluegill and bass from getting infected with white grubs, yellow grubs, and black spot grubs.
Although you will have a great feeder, it will probably be best to just throw a handful of feed in once a day, a few days per week, and probably an hour or so before sunset. See if anything is coming up for the food. If the bluegill are small, you may notice they sample the food, and then spit it out. That is normal until they get a little bigger. Once you find that the food is getting eaten quickly, then you can begin to use the mechanical feeder. This could be a few months away, so don't get discouraged.
It sounds like you are on a great path to success. I know it takes a lot of will power not to want to stock everything at once. But be patient before putting the HSB in. You don't want them eating all your other hard earned work. Are you planning on putting in large mouth bass? I ask, because, I'm not sure the HSB can keep the bluegill population in check, especially when you are between stockings of HSB. If you find that your bluegill are stunting, you may need to add largemouth bass to help the HSB in keeping the bluegill population to where they are growing to trophy size.
Regards,
Ken
