Originally Posted By: teehjaeh57
SMB can reproduce even in absence of rock/gravel for beds - I have beds fanned on clay in my main pond every year. Myself and several others have documented SMB beds on clay on the forum in the past.


TJ, in your experience, what is the reproduction success of the SMB that bedded on the clay substrate vs. the rocky substrate?

RAH, I have a client that stocked his ponds at a lighter than normal stocking rate, and those ponds don't seem to be doing as well as the ponds that were stocked at the rate that is recommended here for forage and predators. I don't know if it is the predators in there not allowing the forage to grow large enough to reproduce in sufficient numbers or what the problem is. The predator fish just don't seem to have the growth rate (even though they were stocked light too) that I typically see in other ponds.

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3/4 to 1 1/4 ac pond LMB, SMB, PS, BG, RES, CC, YP, Bardello BG, (RBT & Blue Tilapia - seasonal).