Ok...so what I understand is my pond will support roughly 30-50# of fish. Once I get 2-3 ft of water in it load it with FHM. Then next spring add some BG or HBG or RES. Next fall ad some HSB. Based on my pond size, how much aeration do I need? I like the idea of using an air pump vs. water pump....I am looking at mcauthurwatergardens.com and they have several systems that seem fairly reasonable in price. I am just not sure how much air volume I need or what kind of diffusers too use. Any input in those areas.

Originally Posted By: esshup
I'd stock some FHM as soon as it had a couple of feet of water in it. Let them reproduce to get a good forage base going.

You have roughly a 1/10 ac pond. If aerated and the fish are supplementlly fed, you can carry about 500# of fish per acre. If not, then drop it down to 300# per acre.

Bg are usually stocked at a 10 to 1 ratio to LMB. As for CC, I won't stock them again in my pond. I am having too hard of a time catching them out. If I catch one, the rest won't bite until the next day. My neighbor, who has a 1/4 ac pond with roughly 80 CC in it has the same problem. I'd also stock some RES in the pond, the same ratio to BG as LMB. (10:1 BG:RES) They will help control any snails, which are a host for swimmers itch parasite.

As to when, it all depends on your budget. I'd get the FHM in the pond as soon as it had some water in it. If you can afford 5"-7" BG, I'd stock them first thing this Spring, then in the Fall I'd stock 10" or so LMB. I like watch fish feed on pellets, so if it was my pond, I'd look for feed trained fish and plan for a Texas Hunter feeder and AM500 or AM600 food.


Last edited by Traildust; 09/15/11 07:30 AM.