Good idea or bad?
I didn't want to hi-jack a recent thread, but it gave me an idea. To start a new thread that would compile information about what everybody harvests from their pond. This might be a good place for those that are interested in having a pond for a food source to see what is going on in real-life scenarios. Yes, there is the pounds per acre formula, but instead we often relate to amounts per year in different ways. I would assume that most don't even keep track of pounds for a meal, just that a meal is meal. Obviously there are many variables to this, but I am thinking along basic info. like:
1) Size of pond/lake?
2) What fish do you eat from the pond? ---This does not have to include all the species present, just the ones you harvest for food.
3 The Amount? ---Just a aprox. number of some sort. For example: 5 meals a year for a family of three. -OR- One fish fry a year for the family re-union of 40 people -OR- one meal a week for a family of two. etc, etc, etc.......
Just keep it simple for overview purposes. Myself, along with hundreds of newbies out there would be curiuos and thankfull for it.
Excellent question ...
Yet, this is a very difficult question to answer. Our pond, and the ponds of many friends, are the centers of many community get-togethers. All include a lot of harvesting and good eating from non-commercial sources.
I was with several friends at breakfast this morning as we were joking about one of the latest "Preppers" shows. We were all laughing, scratching, and telling lies as we decided we must all be preppers, even though we don't really subscribe to their views. We just enjoy life as it has been for us, for many generations.
We grow big gardens. We preserve what we harvest. We shoot and harvest wild animals, meaning, that we hunt, and we have guns, but we aren't 2nd Amendment activists -- actually we like to "bare arms" during the summer gardening season, and we find it rather humorous to arm bears!.
We grow warm blooded animals like cattle, hogs, rabbits, and poultry. We grow the warm blooded animals for what they give us, like eggs and milk, plus meat. We grow cold blooded critters like the fish in our ponds. In our family and neighborhood group, we all have specialties. To us, a neighborhood covers at least a 25 mile radius -- maybe more.
Around the edges of my ponds, I grow horse radish, lettuce, spinach, onions, and cress. Just above the pond, in the wetland areas, I grow WV ramps, berries, and much more. In these areas I grow many of the gourd family, like cucumbers, squash, and pumpkins.
I guess we grow kids and grand kids at the edge of the pond too. They camp in tents at the pond. They learn to make s'mores and just enjoy a campfire, while they wait for a big old catfish to grab their line in the dark. In the morning, they are in the canoes and kayaks, making parents and grandparents nervous before we can start cooking pancakes and eggs.
My friends and I regularly renovate or replant fields around our ponds for the major critters, like deer and turkey. We carefully manage their numbers every season, which we can do with reasonable confidence, because friends and relatives own hundreds of acres around us.
Although my wife and I are "come heres" to where we now live, we are one of many local families who have multiple multi-family gatherings each year. A typical neighborhood gathering, whether just a party, a wedding reception, a baptism, or a funeral wake, they always include at least 30-40 people. Sometimes more. Nobody ever goes home hungry. We always have lots of fish and lots of good times.
Our 3/4 acre pond probably provides about 250-350 lbs., of fish per year. Mostly bluegill and catfish, with some LMB. I have no idea of how much venison the pond area produces, but, it too, is in the many hundreds of pounds per year.
Vegetables -- ?? Enjoyment for swimming, fishing, canoeing -- ??
It always involves at least three generations, and frequently four, of family and friends. In November and December, it includes a lot of butchering and a lot of good eating and fun. It is family inclusive, from infants too young to know how young they are, to those too old to remember how old they are.
As the weather gets too cold to gather outside, we congregate in neighborhood barns or big basements for country dancing, eating, and just plain family fun.
At least where I live, our ponds produce far more than what can ever be measured. It can't be measured in pounds, inches, whatever ...
Regards,
Ken
