Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Learning lots about my pond

Hello all,
Well it's been almost a full year now that I've moved to Washington and have learned a lot about my pond.
1. Temps get too warm (mid 70's) to support year round RT. Still considering for winter fishing, put and take.
2. The BG I stocked last year have grown, I caught a couple of bluegill that would have made Dr. Condello proud. Next time I'll bring a ruler and a camera to share details with you guys.
3. Caddis flies by the millions in spring
4. There is a lot more bottom contour than I originally thought in this gravel pit pond. (steps, shelves, points) Now to add a little more cover to these areas.
5. Seeing big numbers of YOY fish in the shallows.
6. ph 6.5 - 7 all year
Now for a question.

How big or old do bass need to be before reproducing in the north western US?

Thanks again to all of you for all of the great information. It's exciting to finally see the pond taking shape.

Hey Bass. Great recap. Learning about and observing the changes in a pond is always fun. Ok well most of the time fun. Sometimes when the pond is doing something that you don't want it to do it's not so much fun.

Bump for ya. Hey experts got an answer for this one?

Proud of your bluegill, but jealous of your caddis flies!

Bassandgrass -- even in the north country, bass maturity is still more a function of size than age. Largemouth bass males should be close to 100% maturity by perhaps 11 inches, and females by perhaps 12 inches. Some will spawn perhaps an inch or so smaller than that.

Age does factor in a little. If you have a 1 year old, 10 inch male LMB, it may not be mature that spring. If you have a 5 year old, 10 inch male LMB, it may very well be mature in the spring.

Thanks Dave,
I've got a bad feeling that poaching has removed most if not all of my mature, spawning sized bass. There are schools of smaller sized fish, 5 - 8 inch. But I'm yet to see or catch anything spawning sized "this year". Well I guess this might be an opportunity to add a few more bluegill to the mix with out them being an expensive snack.
Thanks again for your help