Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Need help in Maryland

My wife and I moved into a townhouse this past February and there is a 2 acre pond that is managed by the HOA. The pond appears to be pretty shallow throughout (judging by the speed in which my lures hit the bottom) and is filled with BG but has no bass (well at least none that I have caught in nearly a year of fishing and I am a pretty good bass angler). I am going to suggest to the HOA that we have the pond stocked but I would also like to have some more aquatic vegetation and structure added so that the stocking is succesful. The pond backs up to a wooded area and I started adding structure this week by cutting down two 15 foot trees and having them fall into the pond. So now I have several questions:
-Does anyone know of a good bass hatchery in the MD area?
-If the pond is 5-6 feet deep at it's deepest is it deep enough to support LMB?
-Would adding lily pads or hydrilla be expensive and time consuming?
Thanks a ton!

Perhaps you could get them to drain it and dig it out a little deeper. If 5 or 6 foot is the maximum depth you will probably have problems keeping a healthy pond. I know where I live in Central Illinois we are supposed to have a depth of 8 foot in at least 25% of the pond to prevent winter and summer fish kills.

Typically how much does it cost to drain and dig out a pond?

It might not be a bad idea to do a little more research on the pond itself before embarking on a course of action.

This is also important because you might have to deal with the HOA, and accordingly, you should have all your ducks in a row so to speak.

In Maryland, you might be able to get away with 6' of depth for overwintering LMB. I have a buddy who has an HOA pond over in Annapolis and I think it's only 6' deep or so; he has good LMB populations.

If the pond has been in existence for a long time, there is a chance that organic muck has built up on the bottom. If so, going with some type of aeration system might be beneficial to restoring some depth.

Can you get out in a canoe or jon boat and do some depth measurements?

Also, the overall condition of the bluegill population might give some good indicators as to what types of predator fish, if any, are in the pond.

Lastly, I always make a pitch for a new pond owner to extensively fish with live bait (minnows, shiners, worms, etc.) at all depths to help complete the picture of the existing fish population.

Good Luck and welcome aboard.

I have a sea eagle inflatable boat that I will use to get an accurate depth measurement. I have caught plenty of bluegill this year and I have seen kids catch small catfish with dough balls but I have not heard of a soul catching a bass. If the bluegill are thriving is it conceivable that bass would have no problem in the same water or do they require different depths?

I have learned a few things from one old lady in the neighborhood about the pond. The pond and development were built in the mid 80's and the pond was originally stocked (the original documentation for the development boasted a stocked pond); however, around 1990 the pond was drained after a kid fell though some ice while skating and drowned. After that incident the pond levels were kept lower and signs were erected that forbid skating/boating/swimming. The lady assumed that nobody ever re-stocked the pond but she couldn't be sure. The pond is fed by a creek so the bluegill could have been washed in.

Would it be a bad idea to just buy 100 LMB or catch a bunch of small ones and just throw em in and see what happens?

RockMD, When you are doing your depth checks consider probing through the muck layer to the original hard bottom and try to get a feel for the amount or organic you are dealing with,could be inches or feet (Id guess feet) If it is tree lined you may have quite a build up.This can be an indicator as to a supply of oxygen that is not keeping up with demand.Please report back your findings and good luck.

Ted knows his aeration, so take heed there, RockMD.

If all you'd like to do is have a variety of fish to catch, then adding in some LMB might not be so much of a damaging thing, however, if you put in 100 small LMB, they could get eaten if there's already some larger predators in there. If you go with introducing LMB from another location, there is a risk of introducing some type of disease or parasite plus it may not be legal in MD - you need to check.

If you have a goal of making a very specific type of fishery with specific goals, then getting an accurate assessment of the current fish population is necessary, I think.

Because the pond is stream fed, there will always be other native or rough fish getting in depending on what the stream has in it. This is not a total negative, but needs to be understood. You might even have some smallmouth in the pond without knowing it.

Depending on your HOA, you may or may not have too much support to do pond improvements. If you have specific pond goals, it could be very difficult to maintain accurate records and catch data due to many others fishing the pond

Man isn't it exciting though?!!