I went over and measured the pond today with a 100' measuring tape.I came up with 148' wide and 262' long. We got the first rain last night since I seeded and put down the rolls of straw matting last week.In an area that gets a lot of shade,beleive it or not,I already have a small 4'x 10' patch of grass growing.I guess that the moisture from the dew was enough to get it started and the rain last night made it shoot up.It wasn't enough rain to put anything in the pond but it did help settle down the loose dusty stuff.Now there is no more rain in the forecast,that really sucks.lol!
Excellent! Fescue, for me, can grow anywhere, under almost any conditions, as long as you get some straw on it. I didn't water mine, and it came up thick and strong. Planted on hard clay and rock. No fertilizer, or real soil prep. We did get some timely rains, but I was mowing it in no time. I still am, again, and again.. Ha! Hopefully we will get some more rain in late Sept or Oct. my pond is down close to 18" we haven't received near the rainfall in NE Missouri as the rest of the state. Typical..
9 yr old pond, 1 ac, 15' deep. RES, YP, GS, FHM (no longer), HBG (going away), SMB, and HSB (only one seen in 5 yrs) Restocked HSB (2020) Have seen one of these. I think that's about all I should put in my little pond. Otter attack in 2023
I thought I'd give a update.Saturday made 4 weeks since they finished my pond and we're in a drought around here.We've only had 2 small 30 minute or so rain showers and we only have a small chance of a shower this week. I do have a fair amount of grass trying to grow,considering the lack of rain. I've made a few small cedar brush piles and several small rock piles,but need to make more.
This drought is frustrating. It's worse up north. I've washed the car and left it out, tried everything. At least the heat will break tomorrow. I'm hoping for a wet October, because August and September were really dry. Did you get your FHM stocked?
9 yr old pond, 1 ac, 15' deep. RES, YP, GS, FHM (no longer), HBG (going away), SMB, and HSB (only one seen in 5 yrs) Restocked HSB (2020) Have seen one of these. I think that's about all I should put in my little pond. Otter attack in 2023
SetterGuy,most of the rain you've been seeing down are way has missed me.The 2 little showers we got since the pond was built were about 2 weeks apart,and neither one was big enough to even make a mud puddle in the pond.lol!So no FHM for me,I will probably have to wait till spring to add them,unless something changes soon.I thought we was going to get a little rain tomorrow,but now they're saying it doesn't look like we'll get any.They say a drought feeds a drought,and I would have to say they're right.lol!
We are in a new drought here in NW Arkansas. Here, it has rained only 0.6 inches since August 23rd. One pond is down about 30 inches, the other, about 25 inches. Almost the same weather as last year, when we suffered a 5 month drought until late December.
Yep 8/22 was my last real measurable rainfall. I've had three whopping .1" rains since then. Before that it was 7/27 we had 1.5". I'm down at least 2'. The leaves are coming down now. All that mass will bring the water level back up.
Last edited by SetterGuy; 09/26/1711:48 AM.
9 yr old pond, 1 ac, 15' deep. RES, YP, GS, FHM (no longer), HBG (going away), SMB, and HSB (only one seen in 5 yrs) Restocked HSB (2020) Have seen one of these. I think that's about all I should put in my little pond. Otter attack in 2023
It's enough to make you wish you had a well to keep them full.lol!I may look into having a well drilled someday,but it will probably have to wait until we get the house built.
Well this has been a great summer to dig a pond. I got the last dirt on top the dam yesterday and will be doing some more shaping of the bowl tonight. Still need to slope the back of the dam. Even with the drought, I am contending with water coming between the upper layer of red clay and the lower layer of grey clay. If it stays dry through next week, I may get-er done between morning and evening hunts (taking a week of vacation).
Same problem here in WNY, went from too much rain to nothing since mid-August. If it is going to be really dry, I would rather it be this time of year since the growing season is over, and like RAH says, a great time to build a pond. The winter is usually pretty good at coming along and filling things up after construction.
It is not good for fall colors though, the leaves are just drying up and falling off as soon as they turn. It has been quite hot up until today and it has backed the colored leaves to a crisp.
My pond is down 6" after being in overflow from January up to August. I was liking that nice full pool.
Have hope, the long-term weather models are predicting a "monsoon gyre" in the center of the Gulf, and those have a tendency of getting sucked up into the CONUS and wrung out. There is a decent chance you will be complaining about an overflow issue soon enough.
(snip) Have hope, the long-term weather models are predicting a "monsoon gyre" in the center of the Gulf, and those have a tendency of getting sucked up into the CONUS and wrung out. There is a decent chance you will be complaining about an overflow issue soon enough.
It's definitely the time of year to be building ponds here, but you would need a water source in order to compact the clay.
Let's hope for rain. My older pond is down over 30 inches, and the new one is down 18 inches. Only had 0.6 inches of rain since August 23rd, all in one hour, on Sept 17.
I wonder if a pond that seeps due to roots will seal once the roots rot out and the clay settles into the spaces?
I did get a very light sprinkle here yesterday morning.It was just enough to make the pavement look wet for a little while,but I'll take every drop I can get for my grass. I feel sorry for all the people getting hit hard by all of these hurricanes and storms,BUT it would be nice if one of these storms could send a little rain to the rest of us.lol!
Well hopefully my luck is changing.We got a small shower yesterday afternoon and another small one early this morning.We have a chance of rain in the forecast almost every day for the next week.It doesn't sound like they expect to get any large amounts in my area,so I probably still wont get any water in the bottom of my pond,but I'm hopeful that I'll get enough to help the grass out and settle the dirt down some.About 60 miles or so west of me got around 2 1/2 inches I think it was yesterday.The bigger rains seem to keep staying to the west and east of me,but maybe I'll get lucky and get a little more than they think.
Looks good Bobbss. Looks like we may get some more Sunday. I haven't been to our pond for a while. It seems to be missing al the rain that went through. Some areas in NW MO got 4". I got .5.. It will come. Looks like the grass is coming in.
9 yr old pond, 1 ac, 15' deep. RES, YP, GS, FHM (no longer), HBG (going away), SMB, and HSB (only one seen in 5 yrs) Restocked HSB (2020) Have seen one of these. I think that's about all I should put in my little pond. Otter attack in 2023
Thanks SetterGuy,most of the rain has missed me as well.It sucks when you watch the news and they show everyone around you get lots of rain and your just getting a few light showers.We got a lot more rain at my work than I got at my pond.Right now I live about a 1/2 mile (the way the crows fly) from my pond.It is great to see a little water in the pond.I went by today and it had dropped a little,around 4" I think.I figured it would with as dry as the ground was but hopefully it won't drop to much. It's been 6 weeks today since I seeded and put the straw mats on the back of the dam and I think the grass is looking pretty good considering how dry it's been.Here is a picture I took of it today.
Bobbss, Starting to look great with the grass growing. Congratulations. Just watch what you pray for on the amount of rain you receive at one time. I know you are excited about the pond filling so you can start your dream of stocking fish but I would watch out if you get a gully washer all at one time. The dry sides of the pond may wash a lot of silt into the bottom of the pond. A slow steady rain will fill the pond slowly and with less bank to wash in the pond. Good luck and keep posting the progress.
The best way to slow silting is to make at least a partial fill with a pump. I pumped water onto a big plastic tarp, and kept moving the tarp higher as it filled. That is, if you have an external source of water, like a creek, well, or a larger pond.
Thanks Smokey.Not that I think that it matters what I hope or pray for,I'm sure I'll get what I get.lol!I'm not hoping for real big rains but it would be nice to get enough to keep the grass growing and add a few inches to the pond here and there.lol!The pond has been bone dry for the last 6 weeks since they finished it until now. John,I wish I had a source to pump some water in it,I'd sure do it.Maybe someday I can get a well drilled for it.
We got 1.7" up by Hannibal last night! Hope you get a couple inches of rain out of this front. One nice thing about a big hard rain, at least this is what happened on my pond, is that when it comes down hard it almost pounds the clay down and seals it. We had all clay (and rock) so no silting. A real hard rain came early and the clay seemed like concrete after.
9 yr old pond, 1 ac, 15' deep. RES, YP, GS, FHM (no longer), HBG (going away), SMB, and HSB (only one seen in 5 yrs) Restocked HSB (2020) Have seen one of these. I think that's about all I should put in my little pond. Otter attack in 2023
We only got 0.7 inches. The creek is still mostly dry, a few potholes only. Pond #1 is 32 inches low, #2 is 18 inches low. Another drought is in progress, similar to last fall, so far D1 (moderate drought) by US Drought Monitor, same as Hannibal, MO area.
I'm going to have to get me a rain gauge.The news said about .5" but I had a coffee can that I've been using to put oil on my burn piles and it looked like it had almost a inch it.It was enough to put it back up to where it was the other day when it got the first water in it and before it started soaking it up.The grass is looking better! Glad to hear you guys are getting some rain too.
Our long term forecast is only predicting 0.6 inches of precipitation through the end of December. I hope it's totally inaccurate. If accurate, that would be a disaster, maybe the loss of both ponds, and all the feeding.