SetterGuy, the pond weed got eaten by the crayfish? or it didn't like the conditions there?
Always love to see your pond in the different seasons. Lots of oak leaves around your pond (and in it) they don't break down well even with aeration. They are sturdy. The center of the bottom of my pond has oak leaves with a black coating on them but they don't break down. That is why i was trying to use an outboard to stir the bottom up a bit. I do have aeration but it is about 2 feet off the bottom in the center so the stuff in the center on the bottom just stays put.
Your signature line says of your 2nd time around stocking HSB only 2 have been seen? Is it time to stock again or do you think they are still there?
I’m not sure about the pond weed. It was really thick a few years ago. The drought and lower water levels certainly affected it. It had a good start this year, but petered out. We have a lot of crayfish right now. My son wanted to use one for bait. He pulled a net up along the bank one time and caught three.
At the deepest spot, the pond is still 12 to 13’ deep. I can go down and reach it with my feet. There’s certainly some leaves down there, but they don’t seem to be building up. Although, I’m not really sure about that. But to get aeration down there I would be difficult and expensive. And, Im not really sure it would help my pond that much. I don’t really know what happens to our HSB. I just don’t see them, and we don’t catch them. I caught one really big one from the original stocking, and one from the second stocking. Maybe the ph in our pond just isn’t great for HSB survival. My SMB are reproducing, so I haven’t restocked those. We eat a fair number of YP so I keep restocking those. I’m pretty sure the otters took their share of fish too. I had five of them in there until an episode of lead poisoning hit the pond. I don’t think I have any visiting now. But I don’t have as many fish either. Ha
12 yr old pond, 1 ac, 15' deep. RES, YP, GS, FHM (no longer), HBG (decreasing), SMB, and HSB (only two have been seen in 5 yrs) I think that's about all I should put in my little pond. Otter attack in 2023.
