I believe I've gotten my stocking plan for the pond moderately figured out.
I've got FHM, crayfish, and RES as of now. This fall I will buy some Speckle belly and hopefully transfer some wild YP to the pond. Then next spring I will put in some SMB. My thinking is the RES and Speckle won't reproduce a ton so they will be easily controlled and I can just stock some every spring to counter what we harvest and what's eaten before it can get too large. The YP will eat the small YP, along with some crayfish and any remaining FHM. The SMB will help control the remaining young YP and crayfish. If the YP needs more controlling I can drop in a few HSB as well. I'm hoping this arrangement along with some pellet feeding will be moderately balanced. If it falls apart in a year or two it should be easy enough to drop in some CNB and LMB. If I ever get enough vegetation i will try some grass shrimp, but does anyone have any other recommendations for forage? Shiners?
