Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations More trout questions

[Moderators: If this would be better in a different forum, please feel free to move it -- Ken]

Let me start by saying I know very little about trout, except we like watching and feeding them, I'm sure the grandkids would love catching them, and I know we all like eating them.

In the next two to three weeks I plan to put 25-30 trout in my pond (half-acre / 9-feet deep) for the winter. I plan to put them in when the water stays consistently at, or below, 65 degrees about 20 inches down at the end of my dock. This week it has ranged from 67 to 71 degrees. Half would be rainbow, the other half would be West Virginia goldens. As far as I can tell from what the hatchery person told me, they would be 9-11 inches.

Because of my recent poaching problems, I am also thinking about possibly adding some LMB. I haven't caught an RES in two years, so I'm planning on adding some of them at the same time.

Before I commit, is there a chance the trout are going to eat a lot of my small BG and LMB winter forage and stock? My pond is mainly for great BG. I don't want to disturb that significantly.

Do I need to get special trout food? I now use either the TSC farm pond 36% protein feed, or a similar feed from the local farm co-op. The hatchery where I get my fish has food, but it sure seems expensive.

If I do adopt special trout feed, and my BG feeding season overlaps with the trout feeding season, will the same food be OK for both?

For transportation, I figured I'd take two 20 gallon coolers, and get two of the 12-volt cooler aerators from Gander Mountain. I'm about 40 miles/60 minutes from the hatchery. The hatchery guy thought that would be satisfactory, but he also suggested I bring some ice. Does this seem reasonable to get them home?

Are 25-30 trout of this size a reasonable quantity for a half-acre pond? That is about how many I'd like to harvest by next May.


Thanks,
Ken

I don't think so. I think that they'd eat so few YOY bluegill that it might actually benefit your bluegill efforts. My experience with stocker RT says that in cold water they will love to eat some pellets, but their unfamiliarity with your pond would make it difficult for them to significantly impact your BG population.

Since you are not actually "culturing" your fish, I would guess that 36% would be adequate to maintain fish health in cool water. If you were trying to grow monsters year-round I would be more apt to be particular about their diet. I think that what little feed gets consumed in a few winter months that the trout would do fine on 36%, and that the bluegill that actually are eating that time of year would suffer no ill effects if they were eating a higher protein (41-45%) feed that was specific to the trout. In other words, let the fish tell you if they don't like the feed.

ken, thats cool! i want to do that too, but i wont this year, maybe next.

if you dont mind some comments from a norcal hick, i had a couple thoughts reading through yer post that cecil and bruce probably already addressed, but my attention span is short this evening....so sorry for any redundancy...

9-inch trout = nice snack for bass.....how big are yer LMB's?

i dont think that over winter the trout will impact the young lepomis population much, they will go crazy for any aquatic insect or invertebrate life, and better yet....food pellets.

it might be expensive, but aquamax 500 would kick butt for you, it is 41 or 42% protein.

i would think with supplemental feeding you could carry at least 50 trout of that size if the bass dont get em first......lessen yer pond freezes over? it would work at my place.

keep us posted, very cool project.....

edited post.....i forgot to mention.....i've never transferred trout for long distances.....WOULD SALT at some low concentration be advisable to mitigate handling and stress problems??????

Yep salt would definitely help! I ALWAYS use salt when hauling fish. No exceptions!

Thanks for all the great advice.

How much salt would I need in an 80 or 100 quart cooler? (I'm assuming non-iodized, such as kosher salt.)

From the suggestions, I'm now planning on 50 fish, and I'm hoping to find 12 inch, or larger, fish. I'm just having trouble finding larger fish. I've got calls and e-mails into several places. My regular supplier only has the 9-11 inchers. There are a few "fish trucks" that come through several times a year from Kentucky and Tennessee. But, I'd sure like to find something local.

There is also a guy a few counties away who claims to have Kamloops for sale. I haven't tried to call him yet. Does anybody have any experience with them? I'd prefer to have trout that have existed in the local area for a long long time. Plus, just for the viewing pleasure, I want some golden trout.

Thanks,
Ken

With water temps in the high 50's and low 60's, this is PRIME growth rate time for trout! You should be able to gain an inch or two before water temps dip below 45 degrees.

General rule is to feed as much as they will eat in 15 minutes. My 23", 4lb.+ rainbows live for this time of year- pond temp at 60.

My 23", 4lb.+ rainbows live for this time of year- pond temp at 60.



How big you gonna grow them to Michael? You do know in one more year's time they will be 7 to 9 lbs. right? When a rainbow gets that big they are incredible on the end of a line! Yee Haw!