Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Types of fish to choose Finally reworking my pond.

Our HSB were splashing water on the bank at feeding time last week.
Pond bank shallow water temp 90.2 degrees.

Burger, sorry to hijack your thread. I like your new project!

Everyone else: Thanks for the responses to my question. Hopefully the clipped LMB will start to show up in greater numbers.

No problem, it had pretty much run it's course.
Now I know how Brettski feels. Oh well, our eggs are scrambled anyway? Or was that the ice cream?

Burger I saw Friday that there was a flood watch in the area around your pond. Any news ?

Well, the only news I got is that nobody has come out last week or this to break the dam. They are supposed do it on a weekend. They have a pipeline job in Monroe, La. area, but have a big dozer and backhoe at their house about 1 mile from the pond. Sure wanna git er done before too much rain. I pulled out my aerator and had started putting some water in, which I shut off.
Trying to find when it will be done. I have been emailing a guy who just had one built in Walthall this spring. He could go get some good fish when it drains. Report of 2" of average rainfall yesterday.

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(5:45 am is too early to read Burger's posts)

Well, the pond is re dug and looking good. Pics will come. They dug way down to get out all the muck, and finally found good red clay. They spread and compacted all over the basin and dam. I limed the pond and holler? with 8 T limestone. The dam has topsoil over it. I will seed it with bermuda/bahia, maybe rye later on.
Question...what grass or feed seed will grow in the red clay basin...oats, wheat, rye??? Pond in S.W. Miss. 1.5 hrs. N. of Nawlins.

thanks

Congrats. The sooner the better on the pics!

Are you looking to plant something as permanent erosion control, or just something to hold it together until other types of plants establish?

Permanent erosion control on dam and upper basin. Temporary anti- muddying and critters cover in part of the basin.

photos: from the light pole at shallow end:

from the old spillway area, now a tributary:

from the dam:

from shallow end on right side:

Sunil, is it too early for fatheads?

Jeesh Burger...that thing looks a brand new pond! It's real hard to believe that there was a whole buncha water in that thing a few weeks ago. It looks real good, man. That is one fine example of red clay.
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I'm kinda new at this pond stuff, but I do know that Burger-Sunmeister Forage Supply Co recommends keeping the FH in the bucket of water until some of the red is gone.

What will be the maximum depth when all said and done?

Bruce, a good sized portion near the dam will be 14-15 ft. Probably around 3-4 ft. freeboard for dam. I have read that it may be too late to plant bermuda, too early for rye, not sure about bahia, on the dam and roads.
The Miss. forum biologists suggest oats, wheat, and/or rye for the basin. I know rye will not stop erosion or muddying up the pond by itself. I will read the old posts. I think I saw that people have used burlap to cover the seeds, and maybe mulch over it? Maybe that will help get the bermuda to germinate quicker. Also use hulled bermuda. I also read not to plant rye with new bermuda, as it will take too many nutrients. I know I need to get something going quick, or else have a muddy mess. Going this weekend.

B'ski...yes, good red clay, but way down deep. In my old stomping grounds in East Central, Ms., the red clay is a deeper red color and at the surface...as Ewest said, all over cars, tree leaves, etc. Actually, it was not full of water, only about 3 ft. left. kThe dam was very small, narrow, and uncored. Full grown trees on it. Hopefully this one will hold water. I dug a hole in the bottom about 1 1/2 or 2 ft. deep. Filled with water. No loss of water in over 3 hrs. Of course, I filled it back up and packed the clay back in it.

Burger rye will do well now. It will sprout at any low temp over 50F. We have done the following with the burlap FWIW. Prepare the soil (lime and fert) - put out rye and bermuda seed - then cover with a light covering of grass/hay clippings (adds additional seeds) - put down (stake it down) burlap and water. The rye will stop some erosion and will help keep the bermuda in place. I am sure there may be better ways.

FWIW, I am hesitant on burlap now. I have had only one experience and it wasn't good. I purchased the product from Dayton Bag and Burlap; recommended for the application of seeding. I seeded with Rye and fertilized a small area around our spillway pipe. The seed sprouted very well, but the rye couldn't push thru the mesh of the burlap. The only places it pushed thru is the immediate vicinity of the wire stake/staples we used to hold the burlap in place.

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Underneath each pillow of burlap in the pic was a bushy stand of fresh Rye grass. We wound up cutting the burlap at each staple and leaving the small circles of fabric to rot. The 85% balance of the burlap was tediously removed, trying not to tear up the new grass seedlings. Suk'd.

What else you got growing there, Brettski, wild dallis grass, or did you plant something?

Here is where I will likely be forced to enter the PB spanking machine. The tall stuff is winter rye (cereal rye) that I broadcast a few weeks after excavation was completed. Since then, I have done nothing with it. I am not really sure what I'm gonna do.

b-ski I can send you some special Texas blend Johnson Grass seed, I will guarantee 100% germination and coverage.

I don't wanna trample all over Burger's thread (but I will ).
My concern is that it has been a year of exposure to the elements, so the soil is not broken up and kind of packed down. I fear that any seed would just wash away with the rain. In my mind, if I could just scratch up the surface a little, I could sow in anything (along with some seed starter fertilizer). Then, I might use the 280 ft balance of the 6' wide burlap until they sprout...then roll it off before it gets entwined with the new grass seedlings.
The only problem: how do I till up the soil on a 3:1 that is just above about 11 feet of water directly below.

Use a tractor and a harrow and don't let my wife know what you're doing.

Sense your still in denial about needing a tractor I would recomend one of these if your worried about safety. And you already have a storage place built for it.

http://www.frostproof.com/catalog/hb1040.html

yea, just pretend you're digging for gold.
RT, I dont think he got it about the Johnson grass.

Hey, where are the lil' smiley faces now?

My heart went to the gutter, but my head took me to higher ground. Somewhere in between is another Rockytopperism that I'll probably never really understand. It didn't have anything to do with Bremer Mole-rats, did it?

Rent a tiller. It will be less strain on your back than what RT suggested