Newly installed 1 acre pond in Ohio with Fall stocking of 400 2-6” BG, 200 2-6” RES, 100 4-6” HBG, 50 6-11” CC and 20 lbs minnows.
I plan on putting in the 100 largemouths in the spring along with 20 lbs of tilapia for Summer/Fall bass forage. I have two questions:
First, what size class(es) of bass would you recommend for the 100? Sizes and prices attached. I’m not super worried about cost. I would also like to have a 2022 bass spawn if feasible.
Second, would you put another X pounds of minnows in with the Spring bass / tilapia to jump start bass feeding?
Regarding the bass, I would ask the hatchery what the true ages are of the fish to help in making a decision on what sizes to get.
Also, if one of your goals is to grow large bass, then I might reduce the stocking numbers from 100 down to 50 or less.
Excerpt from Robert Crais' "The Monkey's Raincoat:" "She took another microscopic bite of her sandwich, then pushed it away. Maybe she absorbed nutrients from her surroundings."
Also check with Fender if the bass 6+" are pellet trained. A few farms will have larger LM bass as pellet fed fish. Remlinger FF in NW OH raises some larger LMB for the commercial food fish market. One year old pellet fed bass(2021year class) will spawn at 8"-10"and well fed 7"+ bass were likely hatched in 2020 and with plenty of food could easily spawn in 2022 especially if several 10"-12" bass were included in the stocking. One year old 2"-4.9" LMB are your stunted poorly fed bass. Pay attention to when the bass were hatched. Some fast growing very well fed northern LMB can be 10"-12" at one year old. In the south well fed LMB can be larger at one yr old.
If your goal is more toward the trophy bass fishery where in OH they will top out at around 7-8lbs then as suggested stock fewer than 100per acre. Farms like to suggest 100/ac to sell more fish and that is the standard number of State DNR. Although new research says that bass for goals are best stocked at fewer per acre. The fewer hogs feeding the quicker they become larger. When the fish does not grow the best it can each year that growth is lost and never regained. They grow but not with that past annual loss of gain. REMEMBER the goal growing trophy bass sacrifices not as many trophy panfsh. So you need to choose trophy bass or trophy panfish. It is very difficult to grow lots of both at the same time.
A mixed general BG-LMB OH pond fishery will often have most of the biggest bass topping out at around 4-5lb. Also - those CC you stocked will detract from the number of larger bass the pond will be able to grow. CC&LMB are both predators and each acre will only support a certain amount/poundage of predators. CC are not bottom cleaners as many people think. They do not eat leaves, muck and bottom crap. This is why I usually leave out CC when pond stocking. Fish farms like to suggest and sell them because it makes them money. Read up and study carrying capacity from our Common Pond Q&A Archives. It gets a little in-depth but the info is accurate and science accurate / based. Believe it. https://forums.pondboss.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=92440#Post92440
Fast bass growth with fish stocked in 2009 with growth results in 2010, 2011, 2012 = 8 LB bass in less than three years. It is all about the amount of foods available and correct BALANCE of fishes. Proper Harvest is very important once bass start spawning. http://lakework.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/sdafs-trophy-lmb.pdf
Last edited by Bill Cody; 12/11/2103:12 PM.
aka Pond Doctor & Dr. Perca Read Pond Boss Magazine - America's Journal of Pond Management
If you had the patience, you might consider doing the bass stocking in the Fall of 2022 after having let all your current fish pull off successful spawns, and really fill the pond up.
Your catfish may also see some explosive growth during that time.
Regarding adding more fatheads, if money is not a concern, I would stock large amounts of fatheads in the spring and fall of each year. They'll mostly get eaten, some will survive, but you'll also be keeping your baitfish supplier healthy too.
Excerpt from Robert Crais' "The Monkey's Raincoat:" "She took another microscopic bite of her sandwich, then pushed it away. Maybe she absorbed nutrients from her surroundings."
Remember Stocking just fatheads is mostly for benefiting the small predators. Stocking fatheads to feed larger predators the FISH FARMS LOVE YOU coming back. Any predator over 12"-13" does not really benefit much from using too much energy to chase and catch several 2"-2.5" minnows per day. One FHM per day does not do it!. Larger predators need large appropriate sized foods which is why Lakework Management above stocked extra shad, shiners, crayfish and tasty, nutritious, easy to swallow, trout in the fall to help feed the basses best growth rate! Catch one or two a day of those trout or have similar one item meal and your DONE. Big bass need big foods often every day or two to keep them growing and expending less energy for an optimum growth rate. Slow down the right food intake and it slows down their growth rate. In the north you want your bass growing at least 1"-2" per year that is usually 1-2 lb per year. If you want 5lb LMB you could do that with good management in 4-5 Ohio years. More growth per year can be gained in the Southern states with a longer growing season. Again refer to Lakework's results.
SUNIL makes a point. FHM will feed aggressive growing young bass. Remember your 100 juvenile 7" (2.5oz bass to grow it to 13" (18oz) will need 1000 lb of small fish! Close to10lbs of minnows per pound of growth. This is 1000 pounds not 1000 minnows. 2.25" FHM are 250 per pound X 1000 lbs = 250,000 FH minnows. Some of your other fish (CC) may also be eating some of those FHM which means more minnows are needed or fewer predators are needed.
However if your GOAL is not to grow fast growing big bass then a slower growing general fishery is very acceptable.
Last edited by Bill Cody; 12/12/2108:35 PM.
aka Pond Doctor & Dr. Perca Read Pond Boss Magazine - America's Journal of Pond Management
Guys, thanks for the great answers. My goals are to have good size bass, proper population of panfish and harvesting of cats to keep numbers in check and have some good fish fries.
Based on the above advice, I think I will reduce initial stocking of bass from 100 to 75. I will also ask about which size classes might be feed trained and favor them. I will also make sure to partially stock a size class that will have the ability to spawn in 2022.
Waiting to stock the bass until Fall seems like an interesting idea since by then the food should be plentiful (baby bluegill and tilapia). My biggest concern now is if the bass are not feed trained and I put them in in the spring before BG and tilapia have spawned, there will probably be limited initial forage remaining from the minnows I put in in the Fall and most of the Fall panfish will likely be too big to eat. If I stock 8-12 in bass in the Spring, what would be the recommendation for initial forage stocking at that time? Minnows? Shiners? How many?
Unfortunately, fish for stocking a pond aren't like canned goods or clothes. You cannot stick them on a shelf and wait until someone buys them. With the demand for fish the past couple of years the advanced sizes of fish have been sold out, and IF you happen to find some, they are a premium price.
If you stock feed trained Bass that can spawn in 2022, and your pond isn't stocked yet means that you have to first find, then buy bass in March or April that are at least 10" - 12" in length (an 8" bass isn't traditionally large enough to spawn and Bass typically will spawn up here around the full moon in May), and then all of your other fish that are stocked better be 5"-6" in length so they won't get eaten by the bass.
10"-12" bass will be targeting 3"-4" fish for forage.
If the bass aren't feed trained, then if you want each of them to add 1# of weight in the 12 months after stocking you have to stock 10# of forage fish for each bass, and the forage fish should be 1/4 to 1/3 the length of the bass that you stock.
If the bass are 10"-12" that means 10# of 3" shiners per bass, If you are talking Bluegills for forage, then you will have to stock between 416 and 833 2.5"-3.5" bluegills per bass.
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