Brief pond history:
My pond size is 3/4 to 1 acre and about 15 - 17 feet deep at the deepest part. There are many shallow parts which right now range to just inches due to an extreme drought in western Kentucky. My pond's water level is currently down about 3 feet. I've lived here about 4 years and every year I noticed I had some large dead catfish in the pond each fall. I didn't know why and I never spent any time back there as I didn't really have that much interest as the pond was so dark I couldn't see who lived in there anyway. We fished it some and always caught bluegill, catfish and bass.
Livestock had access to it at that time but weren't damaging the sides. I took the livestock and gave them to family and friends but then my neighbors put their horses on my property and they started using the pond to get wet and to drink. They started breaking down the banks. I kicked them out and water them separately now and let the grass grow up now at the pond. I started throwing out feed a bit more and the pond started clearing maybe due to not having run off from rain? I started seeing fish and was encouraged and started reading and spending more time back there. I learned that the catfish died because they were the largest fish and suffocated (
how horrible). I guess that's probably what happens to the bass when they get so big too.
The bass started jumping all around the pond when I let the grass grow up as I had dragonflies then and I started to also get frogs and a couple of snakes. I really like the pond better now and I have wildflowers growing here and there.
It's a long way (I'll have to step it off) from electricity to the pond so aeration for this year isn't going to be so easy. I'm also pretty confused by all the different types of aeration and what I'm really getting basically from reading is this: The only aeration that puts oxygen in the water is the type that REALLY agitates the surface of the water. For instance a water wheel. The others move water around and mix the water in the pond to prevent a turn over and keep all the water at the same oxygen level. I know from putting dye in my pond a few years ago that the water does get mixed throughout the pond in a day or so anyway. Both types seem to have their purposes and I sure don't want to upset anyone that is selling systems or anything. But if I'm wrong about the bottom line please let me know. If you think you might make someone upset then please post me privately.
Anyway, since my pond is so much lower even that usual and I've had problems in the past am I right in assuming that the problem, since I have so much less water this year, is going to be even worse and should I do something right now? I have been having some red algae stuff turing up in the last few weeks about once a week and the next day it's black. Leaves are starting to fall in the pond. I do have a small tractor (45 HP Mahindra) but no paddlewheel aerator.
A couple pics of my pond. You can see how the sides have gone way down kinda in the pic but it doesn't really show it that well. One before the drought with my Mom and Step dad: (I can't find my old disk with another one that shows a large portion of the pond..)
and one a few weeks ago:
Cam
