Been lurking around the forums for awhile and figured I'd get bonafide. Background, in 1993 my dad brother and I went in on 100 acres, in Coshocton County. Since then they've both passed so the land became mine in 2013. I'm now engaged in being the land manager or steward. Started with touching up the land and putting that plan in place, moving on to the ponds now.
Fishbowl dam clean up and prep for rec and foodplot
FishbowlPond fall planting grass and clover:
FishBowl Spring green up...
I spent 30 yrs in the military and looking to semi-retire and get to business on the land and ponds.. oh ya, ponds LoL, the property has 8 ponds, old ones ~70 years, five are hot, nothing grows, but beavers, and 3 are doing well(ish) basically being ignored for 25 years or so. Dad and I went to Fenders and stocked channel cats, smallmouth, perch and crappie haphazardly about 20 years ago. There is a nice population of avg BG and LMB. The CC have died out, but did reproduce in one pond: Long Pond, no smallmouth survived that I tell, nor perch. The crappie are in Figure 8 Pond, doing well as it has a nice Ph weeds and healthy ecosystem. The last one, Fishbowl, has a Ph that allows fish to breed, amphibians to live and breed but no aquatic weeds or algae. It does have cattails and lots of submerged structure ( Beaver huts, beaver branch -food- storage, bald cypress and trees that fell in) This Fishbowl is the one I'm concerned about and would like to get a food base in, I stocked a couple 1,000 Fatheads minnows, going to toss some Game Fish Chow in whenever I'm there, that's mostly for fun and moms smiles. I DO NOT want to increase the Ph as it's the swimming hole and perfection with no natural weeds.
My goal is self sustaining forage base for LMB and BG knowing there are no submerged weeds except cattails. One note, Alng the Dam "foodplot" I have spread AgLime, some 100's of pounds have entered the deep edge of the dam and some weeds have sprouted but not spread.
Pic of fishbowl and water clarity:
Fishbowl is 1.25 acres, 25' at the dam, with old beaver huts and feeding stations plus 50 y/o bald cypress giving plenty of cover. Cattails grow at the stream entry and by the overflow.
What is the best, natural self recurring, biomass that I can start in the pond to produce mid-level fodder for gills and LMB? My goal is not to add a mech feeder and decent avg growth is better for me then $$$$$ & FAST fish pellets.
Some of the cypress trees structure in FishBowl:
Thanks in advance... looking for questions from the knowlesge base in this group!
Best Regards,
Stressless
