These tips will help whether you already have a pond, but are facing trouble with it or if you're looking to add a pond to your land. If you're using it as a food source, it's also important to remember that the health of the fish in your pond is essential to your own health. Since you try to be self-sufficient as a homesteader, it's crucial to become informed about ways your pond can hinder that independence. You don't want to lean on trial and error for something like this.

Pond Size and Depth

While it may be tempting to hand dig and stock a miniature pond in your backyard, ponds under half an acre of surface area have trouble supporting stocked fish in the long term.

Deep water ponds are the only type capable of reliably maintaining a stable ecosystem for your fish year-round. Ponds with 25 to 50 percent of their area at least 10 feet deep are considered “deep-water ponds.” Depending on your climate, your pond may need to be significantly deeper.

Minimizing Sediment & Evaporation

To maintain depth in a stream-fed pond, include a small sediment settling pond to slow the water and allow fine sediment to drop out before the water enters the main pond.

Ponds not fed by a stream have less concerns about sediment, but are more likely to lose depth in times of drought. Minimize surface area where evaporation occurs by having a round or oval pond shape with relatively steeply sloping sides.

Preventing Chemical Contamination

Ideally, avoid synthetic pesticides and fertilizers on your land, but if that’s not an option, do not use them within 100 feet of the pond or the stream that feeds the pond. Avoid mowing or excessively trimming vegetation within 100 feet of the pond. This vegetation buffer zone helps to filter out contaminants.

Preventing Algae Overgrowth

Algae blooms are caused by a number of complicated ecological factors, but the best way to prevent them is to limit or eliminate excess nutrients entering the pond. Preventing runoff from agricultural areas, and keeping pets and livestock as far from the pond as possible, prevents their wastes from entering the pond.

Another way to prevent algae in a home pond is to add a small amount of hardwood ash to the pond. The suggested rate of application is only 1 tablespoon per 1,000 gallons of water.

Choosing Fish Species

The type of fish will depend on your family’s tastes, your location and your pond’s specific ecosystem.

To choose your fish species and stocking density, it’s important to talk to your local extension or to consult a fishery biologist, as pond ecology varies by region.

Have you been thinking about adding a pond to your land? If you have one already, do you have any additional advice for keeping the pond healthy for fish?

Article Source: Off The Grid News