Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Stocking rates, pond depth & somewhat long winded.

So far all I find is stocking rates in relation to surface area. How come no rate as to acre feet in addition to surface.

With the above in mind, if a 1 acre dugout pond with a complete levee surrounding it were kept at constant level by well what depth would be the minimum for BG and LMB at the usual suggested stocking rate per surface area? As for shallow spawning areas and shade several underwater fingers off the levee and mid lake underwater islands with gravel, lilies and such could maybe provide that. With these submerged fingers and islands the area between them would be similar to travel channels. Sort of a combo fishing water garden approach. Any drawbacks with this approach?

One reason is that no 2 ponds are the same, so a surface acreage only measurement helps simplify the process. The useable acre feet of water all depends on the different BOW, some are aerated so the whole water column is useable by the fish, some aren't. So to divide it into acre feet, it would also have to be broken down into ponds that have bottom diffuser aeration systems, etc.

The stocking rates for a LMB/BG pond will vary with the goals for the pond. Different rates if people want a "balanced" pond vs. a pond with large LMB/small BG vs. a pond with small LMB/large BG.

Well the NRCS agent came out and said I should excavate 6' or so with a 3' perimeter berm. All he had was a 6' core tool but says he "thinks" I could go deeper. I told him I'd get a posthole digger to punch some holes and he said he would bring another tool to go 10'.

A 6' dig and 3' berm gives me 9' or say at most 8' of water depth. With a uniform 8' would that end up getting to hot in this TX summer heat? I see all these posts of 12' on up to 18' deep builds. Is that just needed for ponds that depend on rain for the water supply or do the fish benefit any from water over 8'?

The more water that is in "reserve" means that during periods of quick temp changes, the water will change temp more slowly, creating less stress for the fish.

Regarding your well. Do you know how many GPM it's output is? Do you know that the well will keep the pond full?