Farm Pond Management & Care
Reading Time: 4 minutes
Become knowledgeable about pond care 101 and learn farm pond management and maintenance, like aerating pond water and stocking for all seasons.
by Karin Deneke
Ponds are a real asset for your property, and depending on their size, fishing, swimming, and boating offer great warm-weather activities. In winter — providing a heavy ice cover has developed — ice fishing and skating allow additional fun. It’s obvious that livestock watering should never be considered for these bodies of water. Cattle and or horse activity are destructive to the edges of a pond and have a negative impact on water quality.
Starting from scratch — siting your pond — requires serious planning. Pond reservoir areas are designed to hold water behind a dam and embankment. Suitable soils should have low seepage, which is related to their permeability and depth to fractured or permeable bedrock. Therefore, before deciding where to build your pond, it’s important to perform soil tests to determine the water-holding capacities of your soil type(s). Yes, your chosen pond construction site can have several different soil types. Should you bypass this step, you may regret this shortcut as soon as you discover a severe water level drop in your newly installed pond during the first serious dry spell. This indicates you built on porous soil, soil with large pore spaces, possibly combined with fractured bedrock.
Many soil types are ill-suited to hold water. Suitable soils, such as clay soils, have tight pore spaces with low seepage. Your local Conservation District, co-located with personnel from the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) with offices in each county of each state, can assist you with your planning. This information is also available from the USDA/NRCS Web Soil Survey by analyzing soil data.
Aerating Your Pond
Consider installing an aerating device for your pond to help increase oxygen levels for fish and other aquatic life. It also circulates the water which helps to keep the pond clean.
An aerator can be powered by electricity, solar, or wind. Different models are available; most require a power source, such as the electric pump bubbler devices operating on the bottom of the pond to create movement. Other options are the fountain types and wind-driven rotary paddle units. Visit pond supply dealers or shop online to learn what’s available.
Pond Care Throughout the Seasons
Winter
In winter, as surface water temperatures drop and water on top of your pond becomes less dense and turns colder, the bottom of your pond is now much warmer.
Colder water holds more oxygen, and there’s usually no great winter stagnation.
However, life processes in freshwater habitats slow down when sunlight is cut off due to a heavy ice cover under deep snow. At this point, it’s advisable to remove the snow and chop a hole in the ice to avoid stagnation and fish kill. Of course, a bubbler, or other aeration device, would eliminate that chore.
Spring
Spring brings warmer air temperatures, ice melts, and heavier surface water sinks to the bottom, creating what’s called “spring overturn.” Your pond may temporarily take on a muddy appearance.
Summer
Surface water becomes heated while water below remains cold. Anyone taking a dive into a pond in summer, can attest to that.
Fall
Fall brings cooler temperatures. Surface water cools, and water temperatures equalize at all levels. The body of water slowly begins to circulate and starts oxygenating the deeper areas. For a short period of time, fall overturn shows up in the form of muddy-looking water.
Aquatic Landscaping
Once your pond has been built and reached its desired water level, you may consider introducing aquatic plants for landscaping, and fish and wildlife habitat. Yet, many anglers are opposed to this idea, since aquatic vegetation often causes tangled lines and lost lures. Those enjoying their pond for water recreation or boating often prefer an open playing field.
However, aquatic plants have a positive influence on the water quality. Eugene C. Braig IV, Program Director, Aquatic Ecosystems Extension, explains that “complete absence of aquatic plants from ponds reduces beneficial competition for nutrients and increases the likelihood of harmful algal blooms.”
Aquatic vegetation attracts birds and other wildlife. In spring, the sound of red-winged blackbirds is tough to ignore! Your pond is a freshwater habitat for plants and animals. Although some vegetation is good for your pond, a heavy blanket of plant life presents cause for stagnation and loss of water quality.
Stocking Your Pond
How soon should you stock your newly constructed pond? Spring or fall are the ideal times, when temperatures are mild and oxygen levels are high, allowing fish to acclimate and flourish more readily. Most pond owners opt for spring. Yet, it’s not out of the question to stock in summer — even though fish may take more time to adjust.
Allow three prey fish, such as perch and bluegill, for each predator fish such as bass. Catfish feed on the bottom of the pond, however, a bad ratio of prey vs. predator fish can turn your catfish into predators. You may add fathead minnows at intervals to feed predator fish.
White Amur
White amur, commonly referred to as “grass carp,” are a sterile version of carp. They’re herbivorous fish that feed on aquatic vegetation in lakes and ponds and, therefore, are a great substitute for toxic herbicides. This environmentally beneficial carp has an expected 15-year lifespan. Stocking numbers depend on the size of your pond and the amount of plant matter present.
Resource: Ohio State University Extension Aquatic Ecosystems
Karin Deneke relocated to rural Ohio from the mountains of Colorado. Her articles deal with a variety of subjects, from production agriculture to gardening to soil science, just to name a few.
Originally published in the March/April 2025 issue of Countryside and Small Stock Journal and regularly vetted for accuracy.
