overstocked

Overstocked

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To the right is a photo of Cliff and JoAnn's pond. The health of the system as a whole is a direct result of their attention to supreme water quality and filtration. One of the most beautiful and well balanced ponds I've seen. The amount of large natural plant and BIO/MECHANICAL filtration offsets the large fish load.

For many of us, our ponds are home to a variety of fish that we have lovingly purchased, adopted or have happily discovered in our pond, having been carried in by water fowl or hitched a ride on a plant we purchased. How ever the fish arrive, we love the sight of a pond full of swirling underwater color.  When confronted with another beautiful specimen at the store or the fish meet, it's hard to fight the temptation.  Surely we could squeeze in one more fish!?

Many ponders also find themselves with hundreds of baby fish (fry) on their hands! Talk about OVERSTOCK! That's not even to mention the taxing strain the release of PROTEIN from the hatching fry have on the elements of the water.

How many are too many? - It's recommended one inch of fish for every 10 gallons of water. For example a 10X10 pond 2 feet deep is 1500 gallons so the recommendation would be no more than 150 inches of fish or 20-7 inch fish.

Ultimately, keeping the fish population in check is best for the pond and the fish. With too many fish, the water is the first thing to suffer. The increased BIO LOAD with the release of ammonia taxing the whole NITROGEN CYCLE soon poisons the water.

The fish start showing signs of stress and the toxic water will lead to death unless treated. Even if the water quality is not enough for an all out FISH KILL, the reduction in quality leads the fishes immune system into a downward spiral and a slew of disease and ailments soon start to rear their ugly heads.

So how do those ponders do it? How is it that I come across these ponds that are clearly overstocked, yet harbor a healthy environment for the fish? The answer is simple.

FILTRATION & ATTENTION to water quality.

Often what you don't see are the mechanical and biological filtration devices that are working to full capacity to generate a 24hour CLEAN MACHINE to help purify the water. MECHANICAL filtration takes out the physical particles of dirt, scum, excrement, plant material, etc.

The BIO FILTERS create a huge surface area for BENEFICIAL BACTERIA to adhere to and multiply. These microscopic creatures help clean the water as they dissolve harmful components in the water into less harmful NITRITE and NITRATE.

There are a ton of different and very useful variations to building your own inexpensive BIO & MECHANICAL filtration units. 

Another way ponders help combat the ill effects of fish load is to use water plants to naturally filter the water. The roots of many water plants directly absorb water impurities. It's known that the WATER HYACINTH with it's dense shallow root system that resides beneath it's bulbous top, has been used in some cases to help clean water in polluted waterways!

Ponders have found that this plant can work wonders to clean up water quality and starve out single cell floating algae that have turned a pond into PEA SOUP. In my own pond, I learned from the very beginning, that letting nature do its own work is the way to go. Coupled with added BIO and MECHANICAL filtration will only prompt the best results for clean and healthy water.

Below is a picture of one of my ponds. Definitely overstocked, yet I have had clear healthy water and growing and vigorous fish, thanks to the large amount of water vegetation and Mech/Bio filter I have for the pond.