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shawnw Offline OP
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We have 3 existing ponds with very few existing fish. Sparse small bluegill currently exist in the ponds. I have a 3 yr old son who is the motivation to stock these ponds to provide fun sport fishing for him. The 3 ponds are 1 acre (12-15ft deep), 1/2 acre(12-15ft deep), and 1/4 acre(8ft deep max).

1 acre pond
Considering main fish managed for would be hybrid striped bass or white bass. What would be proper forage fish for HSB?

1/2 acre pond
Main fish managed for would be trophy bluegill. Thinking hybrid bluegill pellet fed. What would be proper additional forage for regular bluegill or hybrid bluegill of we choose not to pellet feed?

1/4 acre pond
not sure as it is so shallow. maybe catfish?

Throw out any additional options you would like. Im open to anything as sport fishing fun is really the only goal here.

Should forage be stocked now, or wait until spring?

Could walleye be an option in any of these ponds?

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Hi Neighbor! Welcome to Pond Boss. How about some photos? You can't be very far from our place. If you click the link below in my signature you can see our farm pond fish management story.

Are these old ponds? Did they go dry a few years back? Strange to not have bass in any of them. Add some photos when you have the chance.

Other options for stocking:

What do you think about put & take trout for the winter in one of them?

You could use the 1/4 ac pond as a forage pond to grow out fathead minnows, golden shiners, etc.

Yellow perch and smallmouth bass are also an option in Missouri.

Redear sunfish eat snails and thus reduce grubs.

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shawnw Offline OP
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Hey neighbor! Very cool management story you have. Looks like a fun pond to fish! The farm was purchased a year ago, not sure on the ponds ages but they appear relatively old, and I don't see any signs of them going dry at any point. There is plenty of drainage to them. The farm location with these three ponds is located up near mark twain lake so we are not there that often (summer weekend getaways) I have only had the opportunity to fish them for 8 hrs or so. I have fished them with worms, crickets, rooster tails, rattle traps. The fishing is extremely slow, and no signs of anything but small blue gill. But, yes I agree, it seems strange to have not caught at least 1 bass.

I would say the trout options isn't too appealing. But, I like the yellow perch, and smallmouth bass option.

We are open to different options. With the only real solid decision being a fun bluegill pond for my boy in the 1/2 acre pond.

The 1 acre pond is really anything goes, but I know I love the fight of a HSB. Other than that, what would be nice to stock in this 1 acre pond along with them?
FHM
YP
BG? what type?
Golden shiners?
Crawfish?
RES?
Will white bass survive or reproduce?
Walleye?

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shawnw Offline OP
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Open to setting up automatic feeders or automatic pond aeration if necessary

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Welcome! Personally I'd stay away from white bass. I doubt they would breed in a pond but if they did it wouldn't be good as they could overpopulate easily.

In the 1 acre pond you could get away with a cool water stocking. SMB/WE/YP/HSB with RES for snails and GSH and FHM for forage.

If in the 1/2 acre pond you want trophy BG I would stock purebred BG. HBG don't get as big and the offspring is undesirable. I'd say stock BG/LMB with RES for snails and FHM for forage. An automatic feeder wouldn't be a bad idea on this pond to increase BG growth rates. To manage for big gills keep bass small and numerous (fun to catch) which will decrease BG numbers therefore giving individuals more to eat. This would only be necessary if you don't feed the pond.

As far as the 1/4 acre, use it to raise forage. Alternatively stock CC and/or HBG and set up an automatic feeder. CC would be fine alone but I think both together would be the best idea. Throw a couple RES in there too to clean up the snails.

Also if you can, set up aeration on all ponds.
Not an expert just my opinion.

Last edited by ThePondDragon; 10/29/17 07:50 AM.

0.7 acre pond stocked 2020, LMB, PS, YP.
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It's a little over a mile away, but I can see the dam at Mark Twain from across the road. I bought a boat thinking I'd be over at Mark Twain a lot, but since we built the pond, we haven't used the boat..
I stocked YP, RES, SMB, and HSB after stocking the FHM. We are having a blast catching and releasing the SMB. And eating a lot of YP. I also added some HBG from the guy at 19 & 54. (I also bought FHM from him.) It's a bit different stocking than a lot of Missouri ponds, and has worked well for us. Granted, I haven't seen a single HSB, but I hope to one of these days. The YP are our go to fish for grandkids. They are very tasty and easy to clean. We swim in the pond a lot, and found the HBG to be biters, so we aren't going to add any more, and don't release any. I do keep a feeder going during the summer, but have it set fairly low. Two bags of feed last three months.
We've found the folks in Ralls county to be extremely friendly. Except for the lady that approves septic systems,, but that's another story. Lots of big deer around. Gearing up for that now. Welcome to the forum. I've received tons of help from the experts here.
If you want to sample a YP, let me know.
Jeff


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.
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If you're into HSB, aeration, and pellets, you're going to have a blast catching those things! With a ladder stocking plan and that combo you'll grow some tacklebusters in no time.

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shawnw Offline OP
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The YP, RES, SMB, and HSB sounds like a great combo. Would regular bluegill be a good addition to this combo for additional forage? Any recommended forage other than gizzard shad and FHM? Crayfish? What stocking rates would you recommend for this combination? What will likely be the necessary management needs to maintain a healthy population with this combo?

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Originally Posted By: shawnw
The YP, RES, SMB, and HSB sounds like a great combo. Would regular bluegill be a good addition to this combo for additional forage? Any recommended forage other than gizzard shad and FHM? Crayfish? What stocking rates would you recommend for this combination? What will likely be the necessary management needs to maintain a healthy population with this combo?


FWIW I Like Pond Dragon's suggestion.

"In the 1 acre pond you could get away with a cool water stocking. SMB/WE/YP/HSB with RES for snails and GSH and FHM for forage. "

IMO Golden Shiners (GSH) would be a much better choice for forage for SMB, WE and HSB than Gizzard Shad (GSD). IMO GSD should only be stocked in larger BOWs that have large mouthgap predators like LMB and TM. I would leave out BG but think HBG would probably be ok if you really want them.

Good luck with the project. Please keep us up to date as your proceed!

Bill D.


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Originally Posted By: shawnw
The YP, RES, SMB, and HSB sounds like a great combo. Would regular bluegill be a good addition to this combo for additional forage? Any recommended forage other than gizzard shad and FHM? Crayfish? What stocking rates would you recommend for this combination? What will likely be the necessary management needs to maintain a healthy population with this combo?


You need a real expert to weigh in here. You may also need to nuke all the bluegill if this is going to work. Making it all work in a 1 ac pond might be also be hard.

And absolutely NO GIZZARD SHAD. Golden shiners, yes, GShad, no. Have you ever met a SMB that could eat this?


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shawnw Offline OP
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1 acre pond
YP
RES
SMB
HSB
WE? What will be the effect of the presence or absence of WE?

Golden shiners and fatheads for forage

Would any other forage be benificial to add? crayfish? shrimp?

I know YP, RES, and SMB will reproduce

HSB obviously will not

Will WE reproduce?

What can I expect to be management succession as this pond ages? What are the likely management scenarios to maintain a healthy population?

Would you recommend pellet feeding in this pond?

Do you believe aeration would be necessary?

1/2 acre pond

Sounds like standard bluegill and LMB is the way to go. Fathead minnows as forage. Any other forage options that could be added?

What would be the difference in outcome short term and long term of pellet feeding?

1/4 acre pond.

Im thinking CC. Or forage pond

If we go with CC in the 1/4 acre pond, we can dig another small pond for a forage pond. How large and deep does a pond need to be to grow forage? we have a small tractor with a front loader.

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shawnw Offline OP
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Thank you for the advice. And, looks like you created a great pond! Thank you for the offer on trying the yellow perch. I may have to take you up on it. Given that we may stock similarly to your pond, I would love to check it out.

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FWIW....

IMO WE would be a great addition and are a great bonus catch. They don't reproduce in ponds so you would need to ladder stock them (add small ones from time to time) as you harvest the larger ones. I have WE in my pond and we are now catching 19 to 20 inch fish from our 2015 spring stocking of 6 inchers. Our pond has WE, YP, SMB, PS, BG, HBG, LMB, and a few CC. I'm not recommending this mix including LMB and BG, as it goes against traditional thinking, but it at least seems to be working for us in our little pond so far with careful management.

Do keep in mind that you will need to harvest fish to have a healthy pond.

IMO Crayfish are great forage for these species and are a great addition (I have Papershells). Keep in mind the crays need habitat like rock piles, slabs of broken concrete, etc.

Last edited by Bill D.; 10/29/17 06:32 PM. Reason: Typo

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Originally Posted By: shawnw
Thank you for the advice. And, looks like you created a great pond! Thank you for the offer on trying the yellow perch. I may have to take you up on it. Given that we may stock similarly to your pond, I would love to check it out.


Just let me know. I'm not up there every weekend, but I'll be up, there a bit between now and getting my deer.

Send me a PM if you'd like to try a YP..

Thx

Last edited by SetterGuy; 10/30/17 03:03 PM.

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
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Setter,

Send him a private message. Not a good idea to put your number up.

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1 acre pond.
Aeration should not be necessary but would protect from fish kills and increase biomass.
As far as other forage, IMO waste of money. It wouldn't be a complete waste but I think that money could be spent elsewhere. FHM will keep the predators occupied for a year and the GSH should increase growth rates all around. If do you want another, papershell crayfish would be the way to go.
Feeding optional IMO, will help (mainly YP) but not necessary.

1/2 acre pond
Keep the forage simple with FHM to keep BG recruitment down and available biomass up. Because you are focused on BG growth I would leave other forage out. Feeding would be a good idea, expect fast growth rates and more bigger fish. Not feeding is fine but might require more management.

1/4 acre pond
IMO CC is a good idea. Put a few in with an auto feeder. For a forage pond a small 1/8-1/16 acre puddle that's a few feet deep should work for raising FHM. Use those as forage for the 1 acre pond, the perch will thank you.

Not an expert just my opinion.

Thanks for posting this I'm having a lot of fun with your thread.


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Originally Posted By: Bocomo
Setter,

Send him a private message. Not a good idea to put your number up.


Got it. I tried to at least make it hard to copy and paste. Ha!


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
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Ahem, Setter, delete your number from the post. Don't want that floating around the internet


0.7 acre pond stocked 2020, LMB, PS, YP.
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Changed. whew..


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
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shawnw Offline OP
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Stocking rates and timing?

1 acre pond
YP
WE
SMB
HSB
FHM
GSH
Paper shells
Ghost shrimp?

1/2 acre
BG
LMB
FHM

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Originally Posted By: shawnw
We have 3 existing ponds with very few existing fish. Sparse small bluegill currently exist in the ponds. .....


I'm not a pro but I'm struggling with this statement. In the absence of predators, I would expect you to say you have an abundance of small BG, not "sparse." Are you sure this is an accurate assessment of the pond populations? Have you tested your water?

Last edited by Bill D.; 10/31/17 07:04 AM.

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You're listing species combos that could be right for a NEW pond with nothing in it. Are you going to drain and rotenone to start over?

Last edited by Bocomo; 10/31/17 01:22 PM.
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shawnw Offline OP
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I can't be certain that what I have managed to catch is an accurate representation. But, I know the ponds have not been fished hard in a long time. I know that after hours of fishing with crickets, worms, and bass tackle I have only managed to catch a few small bluegill. Or perhaps some variation of bluegill. How big of an issue would it be to stock the one acre pond if it has a decent existing bluegill population? Can a blue gill population be eradicated Through fishing, and predation from SMB, HSB, and walleye?

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It would not be easy. IMO rotenone it and start with a blank slate. You could drain and seine it to see what's in there but I would still rotenone it. Never make yourself do more work, BG are going to be very difficult to eradicate.


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I recommended testing your water because it seems strange the pond is not full of stunted "BG" if there are no predators. Even a simple test using a swimming pool test kit for PH and alkalinity may be enlightening if you have a water quality issue. If you get a chance, you might also post a pic or two of your "BG" so the pros can give you a positive ID.


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