Ok everyone, as some of you know I have 2 acre pond originally stocked only 50 pure Florida strain lmb. They are doing great and are HUGE for their age. 18 inchers are weighing 5 pounds. My big problem is still they are almost impossible to catch even on live bait. I want to introduce some 12-14 inch native lmb to the gene pool for easier catching later. I still have a huge supply of cnbg of ALL sizes. My question is how many of that size would you recommend to add to the pond to help resolve my "catching" situation? I may be able to get some from friends ponds but would have to transport them 1-2 hours by car to get them to my pond. I'm thinking maybe a dozen will do. But I am not good at judging male/female at that size. What do the pros think? Thanks!

To add to my last post... After thinking about it I suppose is doesn't matter if I stock male or female to the genepool. They would breed with my Florida males or females as needed. Am I thinking correctly??

James come catch some of. My native LMB and stock them in your pond. I am removing all that I catch to make room for my almost gone crappie.... bass have eaten them to where I can’t catch any and the BG have kept the crappie and LMB from getting off any spawns.....

Thanks Pat, I appreciate the offer and I will certainly keep you in mind. Only real problem is the distance. Hah!

Flame, here is a question ? Are your F lmb hard to catch or are there low numbers of them, maybe both? With what I have learned from my experiences I think it might be both situations in your pond. I think it is possible that all the cnbg in your pond may have contributed low spawning numbers of the lmb and along with natural attrition or lower survival at the time they Flmb were added to the pond. it could also cause low numbers. So I would think that a minimum number of N lmb would be 10 per acre. When I added the 14" N lmb we went with 20 per acre. Prior to that time I had problems catching more than two at any fishing outing. I think it was one of the best things I did at the pond. It did a good job improving catch rates and with me using feed trained N. lmb I was able to see some good growth rates through hand feeding. Now here two yrs later and I catch F lmb and N lmb and I am pretty sure I can tell the difference the two species. Shape and overall colors make it is pretty easy for me to see the difference in the fish. Not so sure I can tell the difference in the F1 lmb but I still catch a 13" lmb that looks like F lmb and some that do not look to be a F lmb.

Tracy, I think it's both. I have a opportunity to get 15-20 F1's from a member that stocked all legacy LMB. These would be 14 inch and shorter. That should set me on the right path..correct?? Am thinking of transporting them in my 20 ft Skeeter with those 2 really nice livewell/aeriation systems. About a 1 1/2 hour drive. What do you think? Can I do it now as long as I can keep them alive or do I have to wait for fall cool weather? Anyone?

i have successfully transported smallmouth during the summer before but never for that long. I would think if we can keep them alive during a tournament all day you could do it on the road. I assume you have 2 25+ gallon livewells with recirc and arration. I do add some additive such as G-juce or please realese me as well as ice to keep it cool.

You might consider bringing some very pure salt as well. Helps fish cope with stress and lowers disease risk. But you better be sure about purity, fish are sensitive to even trace amounts of additives that aren't on ingredient label.

Not my business but I was wondering of the water that is used? Is city tap water not as good due to the additives? Is well water better or risky? Or do you bring your own pond water? Just curious.

I do have at least 25 gallons water capacity in each livewell with aeriation. I actually have water in them here at the house right now just testing to make sure I have NO LEAKS and I am good! I will fill the livewells with 5 gallon buckets with water from the pond I am taking the fish from. I have carried as much as 50 pounds fish in those livewells all day during a tournament so I should be good to go. I would NEVER use city water because of the chlorine content and as for MY WELL WATER...I shut it off. It killed everything I ever planted and tried to grow in my yard or garden! Way too much iron and sulfur in it I believe.

Flame . I am not sure the boat will support 20 lmb. That is alot in a boats livewell, even a good one. Maybe 10 would work, if it was done early morning hrs. I would give it some more thought on how to transport 20 14" lmb. Maybe the boats livewell along with some additional containers that could be aerated. i have a 3' x4' cooler that I aerate with O2. A micro diffuser from Pantair with a large bottle of oxygen from a wielding supply co , If you want to barrow it come get it, but u have to bring it back lol Just north of Marshall. And there is a reason the new boats have O2 injection into their live wells.

Tracy, just last Saturday we drove to Jefferson to get some of that fantastic Riverboat BBQ! Must have went right by your place. Thanks for the offer. I do have other large ice chests I could take to be on the safe side. I have several of those minnow bucket aeriators too. Maybe I could just do 2 trips at different times. I've waited this long to catch a bass. A little longer won't hurt. I guess on another note...IF any die on the way home I could have a fish fry that afternoon!

I saw a video that actually recommended adding hydrogen peroxide to livewell water. They claimed it very rapidly breaks down into harmless water and very beneficial oxygen.

Anybody tried this? If it works, could be handy in case of emergencies.

I have heard of people who used it as a livewell additive during tournaments before commercial options were as popular as they are today, used in MODERATION it is fine.

Wonder what moderation would be? How much per 5 gallons? I have never heard of this but will read up on it.