How to Stock Fish Fingerlings in Ponds in Winter? Detailed Explanation of Key Technical Points

(Agricultural Wealth Network) At present, adult fish farming is about to enter the stage of winter harvesting and winter stocking. As the saying goes, "stock fingerlings well and you have half a pond of fish," which shows that how well the winter stocking techniques for fingerlings are mastered has a major bearing on pond farming yields and economic returns. In the author's view, to do a good job of winter stocking of pond fingerlings, attention should be paid to the following key points. 1. Stocking time. Winter stocking of fingerlings should be completed after the Winter Solstice and before the Beginning of Spring, because at this time the air temperature is low and the water temperature is also low, the fingerlings' activity capacity is poor, and the losses caused to the fingerlings during netting, sorting and transportation are the lowest. Stocking should preferably be carried out on sunny days; in bad weather such as rain, snow, wind or freezing, fingerlings should not be stocked, so as to prevent injury to the fish body that would affect the survival rate after entering the pond and the normal growth of the fingerlings. 2. Disinfection and disease prevention. The pond should be cleaned and disinfected once every year. The idle winter season should be used to promptly carry out cleaning and disinfection. Before stocking fingerlings, the pond must be cleaned and thoroughly disinfected, with excessively deep silt and debris removed, the pond embankment heightened and reinforced, the water inlet and drainage systems repaired, and quicklime used to improve the environment for the safe habitation of farmed fish. Before the fingerlings enter the pond, drugs such as salt water and potassium permanganate solution should be selected to wash the fish body, which can reduce deaths after the fingerlings enter the pond and the occurrence of fish diseases in the coming year. 3. Stocking structure. According to market demand, and in combination with the main farming conditions of the local fish farm such as fingerlings, feed and facilities, the stocking methods for various farmed fish species should be drawn up. Be sure to avoid stocking whatever is available and stocking at random, or one-sidedly increasing the stocking quantity in pursuit of yield. Reasonable mixed stocking and dense culture should be carried out according to scientific fish farming methods, selecting young-age, large-size fingerlings, adding high-quality fish, and polyculturing new varieties, so as to achieve a wide variety of edible fish, large sizes, good prices, increased yield and high efficiency, which can provide the greatest fish output and the best technical indicators while also obtaining the best economic benefits. 4. Production layout. Implement the business policy of farming fingerlings to serve adult fish and adult fish production to serve the market. This requires marketable varieties and various suitable grow-out sizes to improve the production capacity of repeated harvesting and repeated stocking, and to achieve early listing and balanced listing. For this reason, in the production layout, the pond areas for producing fingerlings and adult fish should be planned well, so that fingerlings and adult fish can achieve coordinated production. 5. Stocking management. Before winter stocking of fingerlings, apply sufficient base fertilizer, achieve winter stocking in the twelfth lunar month and stocking in fertilized water, manage immediately after stocking, and prevent severe winter freezing, pay attention to maintaining the pond water level, and conscientiously do a good job of recording the pond farming log, so as to analyze and compare, adjust yield-increasing measures and summarize the experiences and lessons in farming.