My recipe for the pond, at this time, would be 10 pounds of fathead minnows, another 1,400 BG and 100 to 200 redears. At this time, without bigger fish, your forage fish shouldn't experience a lot of predation. However, when the bass grow and spawn, they can and generally do over eat the food supply. The redears are not absolutely necessary.
You have this small window of time to do it right before the bass grow enough to wipe out the forage base.
BTW, in pond management, initial stocking is the cheapest thing but most critical thing you will do.
After the 2nd year, remove any bass that is 13 inches or less. Catch and release and too small to keep generally ruin private ponds. Bass are eating and spawning machines.
You would stock 2100 bream in a one acre pond? I was hoping to get about 1,000 in before the end of the year.
The BIGGER question: The small window of time to do it right... When does it close? I am fresh out of grad school, but I will be teaching full time in the Fall. My funds will be much more open for fish. I could probably stock another 500-750 bream in the fall (if that's not too late).
The redear are only necessary due to the fact that the other guy who is paying for half of the pond management is head over heels for shellcrackers. I don't get it, but he's basically family and he's paying.
Important Question: Stocking 1,100 bream in a 1 acre pond... How much will I need to harvest each year? And since I stocked 60 bass, when should I start keeping them?
Thank you for everything. This is great advice!
