Pond Questions

[Horse Fork Farm]

Whats the smallest viable pond for being able to put in some fish for the kids to fish out? We want it big enough for the fish to naturalize. I've seen ponds for cattle watering that had a lot of fish and I would never have expected fish to thrive there. They were small... like 30x40 or so. We have an area about 1/3 or an acre where spring water seeps out and the whole area is covered in little rivulets that run to the creek down below. Would this be a good area? Can I please see pictures of your smaller ponds???

[fishhead]

Your pond can be any size as long as you aren't planning on raising a lot of large fish in it.

If you practice catch and release or put and take (regular stocking) your pond could be 10'x10'.

[Backfourty,MI.]

We had a pond dug almost 7 years ago & it is a little over 1/4 of an acre & the deepest end was dug to 19 feet & the other end to 14 feet. It slopes to the middle for the deepest depths & we have stocked it with bluegill's, sunfish & brooke trout. No one thought the trout would make it because they were just tiny when we put them in there. I've caught some of the trout since then & they were a good 12 inches & some really big bluegills.

We also have a beach on one side of ours & use it for swimming. Perfect size for the 2 of us, our dogs like to swim & when anyone brings their kids over like neices & nephews, etc. since we have no children.

[Darren]

We've got a small pond that is maybe 200' long by 100' wide. It was built at the toe of a hill. We have folks come in to hunt each year. One man and his sons spent a fantastic day fishing. The pond has large bass and sunfish. They almost got a hit every time they cast. We don't fish it, so that was the first time in years that someone had a line it.

There should be an office of the Natural Resource Conservation Agency somewhere close. They can send someone out at no cost and give you some ideas.

[fantasymaker]

A 55 gallon barrel?
LOL Obviously it depends a LOT on you and bigger is easier. But Ive seen a lot of bluegill and goldfish in stocktanks so Id say a 20' diameter and 4' deep would work just fine.

[geo in mi]

These people are the experts: http://www.aces.edu/dept/fisheries/r...ng/pondmgt.php

geo

[plowjockey]

A spring in one end, a creek at the other. It does not get much better than that for a great pond.

Get digging!

Fish will survive in nearly any pond provided the water keeps oxygen and does not get too warm.

Our 1/4 acre has no water inlet, other than runoff and is about 14' at the deepest. Water level stays all right unless it is a really dry summer, which it dropped about 2'. We have bluegill a couple bass and some catfish, up to 14". swimming is pretty good once we clear ot the weeds.

I have installed an aerator to control muck, by oxygenating and moving the water.