Originally Posted By: poppy65
Originally Posted By: esshup
Up here, Ag lime is short lived too, and usually needs to be applied every 2 years to the soil.


That's interesting. This is farm country and you rarely see a farmer applying lime down here. Is the soil there just naturally acidic or is it due to lots of pine trees? Do the unmanaged waters there such as ditches, ponds, etc. produce any decent fish? I know very little about how PH affects fish health and growth and am trying to learn. I saw a Pinpoint PH meter advertised and may get one just to check my ponds out of curiosity.


The dropped pine needles and sap are what leach into the soil making it acidic. The lower pH does affect fish growth, but mostly in an indirect manner. The acidic water will support far less phytoplankton, macrophytes and other tiny creatures/plants that make up the base of the food chain in the pond ecosystem. Less base means fewer fry growing to feed higher links in the food chain....