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Farm Pond Management Calendar

Farm pond management, when practiced correctly, is a year-round effort. Although not every management practice is required every month, and some are only needed once every several years, timing is critical to the success of almost all of the standard practices recommended in Mississippi. This calendar may help the pond owner remember when to conduct appropriate management procedures, and, thereby, ensure proper timing and satisfaction from management inputs.

Calendar

  • Lime -- October through January
  • Fertilization -- mid-February through mid-September
  • Chemical weed control -- mid February through June
  • Biological weed control (grass carp) -- All year
  • Stock bluegills, redear (1"-3") -- October through January then
  • Stock bass fingerlings (1"-3") -- May through mid-July
  • Stock catfish -- October through March
  • Balance analysis -- May through July
  • Catfish spawn -- mid-April through mid-July
  • Bass spawn -- mid-February through mid-May
  • Bluegills spawn -- mid-April through September
  • Redear spawn -- April through June
  • Feed catfish and bluegills -- March through November
  • Winter drawdown -- mid-November through February then
  • Refill -- February through mid-March
  • Fishing and harvest of all species -- All year
  • Construction or renovation -- May through September

Fertilization

One of the best ways to increase the quality of fish in a pond is to increase the food supply; fertilization accomplishes this. In most Mississippi ponds, fertilization can increase carrying capacity twofold to fourfold over the nonfertilized condition. Begin fertilization in February or March and continue through September. Applications are needed when water visibility exceeds 18 to 24 inches. For detailed information, ask your county Extension agent for Extension Information Sheet 229.

Lime

Agricultural limestone is needed in many parts of the state to increase soil pH to at least 6.5 and to increase water alkalinity to a minimum of 20 parts per million. Lower soil pH or water alkalinity results in ineffectual fertilization and wastes labor and money. Generally, 1 to 2 tons of lime per acre every 3 to 5 years are adequate to meet minimum lime requirement.

Aquatic Weed Control

Chemical weed control is usually the most expensive method, and should be initiated during early spring when weeds are young and actively growing. Once summer arrives, chemical weed control becomes risky and expensive. For detailed information, ask your county Extension agent for Extension Information Sheet 1036.

Biological weed control involves the use of grass carp, which can be stocked anytime during the year. If largemouth bass are present, it is important to stock carp that are at least 8 inches long to prevent the bass from eating them. For detailed information, request Extension Publication 1894 from your county Extension agent.

Stock Bluegills and Redear

The most common bream combination is two-thirds bluegills and one-third redear sunfish. Stock these into a new pond in late fall or early winter. Stock bream at the rate of 500 fish per acre. For detailed information, ask your county Extension agent for Extension Publication 1892.

Stock Bass Fingerlings

Stock largemouth bass into new ponds in the late spring following the previous fall stocking of bluegills and redear. Bass are usually stocked at the rate of 50 per acre. For detailed information, ask your county Extension agent for Extension Publication 1892.

Stock Catfish

Channel catfish can be stocked into bass and bream ponds anytime, but usually do best if stocked during the cooler months to minimize handling and transport stress. When stocked with bass and bream, rates should not exceed 100 per acre. If stocked alone, up to 500 per acre may be stocked. For detailed information, request Extension Publication 1892 from your county Extension agent.

Fishing and Harvest

Fishing is the culmination of management efforts and the reason most people have a pond. Proper harvest of the right numbers and species of fish helps maintain proper population balance. In general, anglers should remove 10 pounds of bream for every 1 pound of bass removed. In most ponds, no more than 15 to 25 pounds of bass per acre should be harvested.

Balance Analysis

Unfortunately, many ponds eventually are neglected or overfished, and the fish populations become less than desirable. When bass/bream populations no longer provide satisfactory fishing on a sustained basis, they are considered to be "out of balance." Checking your own pond balance will entail using one or both of two information-gathering techniques. The best strategy is to use both and to combine observations from each.

Knowledge of the fishing success of those who fish the pond is the first data-collection method. A good record-keeping system can be invaluable as you manage your pond or lake. Extension Form 966 provides a suggested method of keeping fishing records. The other data-gathering method is use of a short 15- to 25-foot minnow seine with a mesh of 1/4 to 1/8 inch. Extension Publication 1952 provides detailed information about checking pond balance.

Winter Drawdown

One of the most useful, and inexpensive, pond management practices is called a winter drawdown. This is the reduction of water levels in a pond to some predetermined level, and generally is designed to expose 35 to 50 percent of the pond bottom area. Winter drawdowns can be useful in controlling aquatic weeds, and can be invaluable in manipulating fish populations and facilitating pond repairs, redesign, and liming. Extension Information Sheet 1501 provides detailed information about winter drawdowns.

Construction or Renovation

Summer is the best time to construct a new pond or lake, or renovating an old impoundment. Soils are driest at this time, and completion of the pond by fall allows rains to fill the pond to provide water for stocking fish in late fall.

By Dr. Martin Brunson, Extension Leader and Fisheries Specialist, Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, and Dr. Chuck Weirich, former Area Extension Fisheries Specialist, Delta Research and Extension Center, Stoneville

Mississippi State University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, disability, or veteran status.

Form 965
Extension Service of Mississippi State University, cooperating with U.S. Department of Agriculture. Published in furtherance of Acts of Congress, May 8 and June 30, 1914. Ronald A. Brown, Director

Copyright by Mississippi State University. All rights reserved.

This document may be copied and distributed for nonprofit educational purposes provided that credit is given to the Mississippi State University Extension Service.

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