Pond Boss Forums INTRO New Forum Member Introduction Digging a pond in west-central MO.

Been doing some thinking about my stocking plan & think that while SMB/YP/RES/HBG will work well enough, I'm starting to look at it from the perspective of food production. Not in the commercial or farming sense necessarily, but we love eating fish & would like to be able to catch supper as often as possible.

How does that consideration color your opinions about my current plan? I intend to hand feed & aerate, but also don't want a fishery entirely dependent on human intervention, with the exception of fishing.

If I cut the HBG out of the mix & up the YP numbers, can the YP fill the fun/not too difficult to catch niche, while also making regular appearances on the dinner table? Can the RES be managed to also be harvestable? Or, stock HBG as planned for quick fun & eating & let the YP fill the "void" as the HBG are fished out?

I would also add that if I go with SMB & YP, GSH & crayfish will go in once the SMB have a season to get big enough to keep 'em under control.

I've been doing a ton of reading on BCP & HCP & yes, I know, I know, but it seems some are having success in smaller ponds. How much would our willingness to eat every one big enough to filet help to keep numbers in control?

I've seen folks talk about using HSB to hoover up the baby crappie when they go to open water. Given the small size of my pond, is "open water" really an actual distinction in that regard? Could SMB & heavy angling keep BCP from overpopulating in a pond this small? I hear YP are pretty aggressive. Could they also help keep BCP numbers under control? Or would the SMB ignore the BCP with YP available? Nothing against the HSB at all, just trying to minimize the need for regular re-stocking.

What are y'all's thoughts on this? Are fun fishing & regular meals possible in a pond this small? SMP/YP/RES? SMB/BCP/RES? Or? Regardless, nothing's going in till spring, so plenty of time to decide.