# New Pond Construction



## F1504X4 (Mar 23, 2008)

We are getting ready to turn our 49 acres in to CRP and we are also putting in a 1 acre pond while we are at it. Hopefully they will begin the the ground work in a week or two. My question is this, What would be a safe depth to go with the pond? We were thinking around 12 feet at the deepest, is that too deep? What kind of structure should we put in it while the water is low? We have a pile of clay tile that we thought about piling up for some habitat? Any other info is much appreciated!


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## [email protected] (Dec 22, 2006)

Take the low water opportuninty to at least get your dock posts set and frame built. A concrete pad placed like a boat ramp would be nice addition for launching a boat and give smimmers a place to walk in/out without getting their feed muddy and would give you more reason to get a concrete truck in there. 12' depth is fine as long as the soils are good to that depth. 8' is plenty but deeper will allow for some silting. Don't go steeper than 5:1 slope anywhere you wish to mow. Slopes below water level are usally recommended at 3:1 to discourage weed growth but I have both 3:1 and 5:1 and there is little difference in weeds but a 3:1 slippery clay bottom is far more difficult to climb out of than 5:1. A rock hound on a skid loader does a nice job of cleaning up the rocks an prepping the seed bed. I prefer a harley-rake for larger areas. Get some turf reinforcing or grow-through fabric and be ready to lay it down and seed ASAP to prevent reworking...the CRP may already have specifications on how this has to be done and what seed should be used. These should be high priority as they become much more difficult after the pond fills. 

Stacks of pallets are good additions early to give fathead minnows substrate to spawn on but they are snag magnets. Piles of clay tiles are okay, larger tiles will promote channel cat spawning, you may or may not want this (most pond owners don't). Rock piles and such are not nearly as beneficial to growing fish as bushy or weedy cover but they do give you something to cast to. Connecting cover and structure with ditches will help in fishing too.

Don't make the mistake of adding predators too soon. Get your forage established, you will never have an opportunity like this again. Fatheads, mosquito fish, and crawdads can be added as soon as the water is a few feet deep and bluegill (not hybrids). Depending on how long construction takes, the earliest you would want to add bass would be this fall and then only 3-4" fingerlings.

Bob Lusk's book "Perfect Pond, Want One?" would be a good investment.

Under the CRP, is there a ratio of pond:wetland you are required to do? Is this pond going to be used for waterfowl as well? Are you building a dam or is it all excavated?


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## [email protected] (Feb 29, 2008)

I second PondFin 100%. Also, Kudos for going CRP. Gambusia affinis or mosquito fish are not necessary. Research has proven that FHM consume just as many mosquito larva as the Gambusia minnow; they just don't have mosquito as part of their common name.


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## F1504X4 (Mar 23, 2008)

Thanks for the great advise! The pond is extra to the CRP. We will have 7 acres of wetland in the same field as the pond and another 5 acres in another field. I hope the guy from FSA gets out there this week to mark everything out so they can begin construction!


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