Originally Posted By: Bill Cody
Possibilities:
1. You don't have to get all or any trout out of the pond before they die, but if you don't take any out the potential fish meal is wasted. When they die, most will likely float some may not eventually float, but sink, remain on the bottom and decompose on the bottom to release / recycle all those bound accumulated nutrients into the pond which will "feed" plants probably mostly filamentous algae which will cause AquaDoc to use more chemicals in the pond killing all those extra plants. It is a chain reaction. Building the pond started the reaction. Tilling a portion of your yard for a garden also starts a similar reaction of work.

2. You can add a few bass (SMB or LMB) fingerlings to your pond and not feed them anything - nothing. Just don't expect them to grow larger than 8" without some sort of abundant food chain to make them grow as in 10 lb of minnows to grow 1 lb of bass. If bass only eat a few bugs and their offspring each year they don't grow much, if any, but they don't starve and die either until they reach the end of their life span. Offspring then replace the natural or induced (angler) mortality. There are a lot of successful ponds near me with only bass 8"-10"long.

3. A few single sex fish species, because they wont spawn to produce an overpopulation problem, are another possibility. Examples: yellow perch, bass, bluegill are a few common examples. You will probably need a very good, smart, experienced angler or better yet a fishery biologist to help with doing this single sex fish option.

4. The hybrid fish and other species that esshup mentioned are a good option to consider.

Whichever option you choose I suggest you return and ask us about the pros and cons of your selection for your 0.1 ac pond.


I am considering the following plan and am asking the forum for pros and cons as Bill Cody suggested. Thanks to many for their responses and suggestions!

Plan: Stock a dozen or so RBT fall 2013 (now), and hand feed these through this fall/winter/early spring. Fish these for fun and good eats until spring. Harvest all RBT and stock with forage (3 lbs FHM and 3 lbs of GSH). Add no predator fish until fall 2014 and let the forage spawn. Stock fingerling predator fish LMB?/SMB?/HBG/RES/TGC)in the fall 2014. (Note: I read here last week about fish company that can mail next day 250,000 GHS fry for new ponds at a very low cost.) Thoughts?

Does this plan make sense?