Sharing Experience in Pond Farming of Largemouth Bass
California bass, also known as largemouth bass, has the characteristics of relatively fast growth, strong adaptability, few diseases, easy to catch, tender meat, delicious taste, and no intramuscular bones. Its farming techniques are as follows.
1. Pond conditions. California bass is good at inhabiting a quiet water environment with fresh, non-turbid water, moves in the middle and lower water layers, and has the habit of occupying a habitat. The suitable growth water temperature is 12-30°C. The area of a polyculture pond is generally 3-5 mu. The water depth is more than 1.5 m, the water source is convenient, and there is a drainage and irrigation system.
2. Polyculture method. Using ponds for polyculture of California bass can control the density of wild trash fish in the pond and the excessive self-reproduction of tilapia, and at the same time avoid wild trash fish competing with the main cultured fish for bait, oxygen, and space, thereby accelerating the growth rate of the main cultured fish, improving feed utilization, and increasing the overall benefit of the pond. In order to ensure that the cultured fish species are not preyed upon by California bass, when California bass are stocked into the pond, the size of grass carp, silver carp, bighead carp and other fish in the pond should be above 200 g, and the size of crucian carp and tilapia should be above 10 cm. The best stocking time is generally May-June. For each mu, 20-30 fry of California bass at a size of 3-4 cm from the current year's reproduction can be stocked, which can be determined according to the amount of bait and pond conditions, but do not at the same time polyculture carnivorous fish such as snakehead, eel, and large-mouth catfish.
3. Bait. California bass can use natural bait such as small wild trash fish and aquatic insects naturally reproduced in the pond. When 20 fish are polycultured per mu, it is generally not necessary to feed bait fish. However, if wild trash fish in the pond are scarce or the stocking number is large and cannot meet their growth needs, a batch of small wild trash fish can be placed to let them reproduce offspring, so as to ensure that California bass have sufficient bait fish. Or polyculture a certain amount of tilapia and let them reproduce small fry for California bass to prey on.
4. Pond management. Persist in patrolling the pond once each in the morning and evening, and avoid excessive turbidity or excessive fertility of the pond water. The transparency should preferably be 30-40 cm. New water should be injected regularly, generally changing the water once every half month. In high-temperature seasons, attention should be paid to fish disease prevention and control. From June to September, apply 25 kg of quicklime per mu every half month to regulate water quality and kill pathogens, parasites, bacteria, etc.