Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Hybrid stripers in smaller ponds

Brian-- Be glad you can get get the grass carp by jumping thru the hoops for Texas F&W. Here in Michigan it is illegal to bring them into the state.
If you have access to a tractor, I made a nifty gizmo for clearing weeds out to 22' from shore. I took an old 3 point sprayer frame I bought for $10 and welded a 10" piece of 2" ID square tubing with a hole thru the sides on to it just like the receiver hitch on your truck. I got a 22' long piece of 2" OD x 3/16 square tubing and an old 3 point 5' landscape rake that I took just the rake part off. I welded another 10" piece of 2" ID square tubing with a hole thru the sides onto the center of the bar that the rake tines
are attached to.
Put the 3 point frame on the tractor, slide the long bar into the receiver, put a pin thru it, put the rake on the other end of the bar with another pin and you're good to go. Raise the 3 point, back up the the edge of the water, drop the three point and pull forward bring everything in its path with it.
I only do the area on both sides of the 2 docks as that is the only places I can pull straight away from the shore for more than 22 feet. I can bring in what seems like tons of wet, slimy heavy weeds in a very short time. In about 3 days you can put the tons of dried weeds into a bushel basket and cart away. I go very slow with the tractor to allow any fish or creatures time to get out of the way and there are no serious obstructions like big rocks or stumps in the areas I rake. It works really well for me and I don't have to worry about decomposing plants eating up the oxygen or becoming more silt on the bottom.
Dan