Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Pond restoration questions

I wish you hadn't of stocked the fish. I'd recommend killing the pond and starting over. A couple of reasons. The bass that are in there have been stunted for a long time, and a LOT of them won't;t grow to anywhere near their potential due to their age. Why throw $$ away feeding them? Then there's the genetic base. They are used to not growing due to the limited food supply, not having enough cover; possibly being marathon runners or both. LOTS of things have changed since 1985, and there are strains of bass that grow fast now. (Titan Bass, F1's, etc.)

I would NOT stock any bluegill until you got the bass out of there that you have to get out. Why feed bass that you are going to be removing? You could stock Coppernose Bluegill down there. I'd stock about 25% Redear Sunfish (shellcrackers) if you see any signs of snails in the pond. Remember, a bass will eat a bluegill that is up to 1/3 (or so) it's length. So to prevent the existing bass to eat a lot of the BG or CNBG, you have to stock advanced sizes. We have grown bass from 2 1/2"-3" in early May to 12"-14" by late October and they weigh between 1.5-3 pounds each. That is with stocking FHM and GSH in the Fall, with 2,500 BG and 500 RES that are 1"-2.5" long per acre, then the fingerling bass the following May. Feeding is very helpful too. You might want to look at Purina MVP or Endurance Fish Food. Higher protein/fat levels.

You really should get the drainage pipe fixed. Depending on the spillway, its a recipe for potential disaster. What would happen if you had all the fish stocked, then a big enough rain came and washed away the spillway and drained the pond?

Also, I would hold off on adding any fertilizer until you get the alkalinity of the water up where it is supposed to be at. Without the correct alkalinity, you could have plenty of nutrients in the pond to grow phytoplankton, but the low alkalinity is limiting their growth. Get that correct, and with extra fertilizer it might be a green soup mess. To verify whether you have enough nutrients in there, I'd suggest getting the water tested for Nitrogen and phosphorous. You want the numbers to be within this range. TP = Total Phosphorous 0.01 - 0.075 mg/l TKN = Total Kjeldahl Nitrogen 2-6 mg/l.

If it's higher than that, do NOT add any more fertilizer until the alkalinity is where it's supposed to be for a few months. I like to see alkalinity no lower than 40 ppm. Many places say 20 ppm but that really doesn't leave you much (if any) of a buffer if it drops any lower. Our Alkalinity here in Northern Indiana is in the 150ish range........ You want the phytoplanktom bloom to give you between 18"-36" reading on a Secchi Disc.