North Carolina Farm Ponds, 1946

By F.H. Jeter, Extension Editor, N.C. State College, Raleigh, as published in the Wilmington Star, October 14, 1946

Now that the rush of summer work is over and the fall harvest gets underway, North Carolina landowners have begun to think again of farm fish ponds. One of my Raleigh friends took a trip during the summer and, being an inveterate fisherman, he naturally began to notice the many new fish ponds in all parts of the Piedmont as he took his vacation trip towards the mountains. He talked to a number of folks about the ponds and found them happy about having this new recreational feature added to their farms.

Reports indicate that there will be no lessening of interest in the ponds this year. New ones are being built constantly, and the farmers found that not only do the ponds add fish but they furnish a needed supply of fresh water. They add beauty to the farmstead, and they are fine to have on hot summer evenings when one has worked hard all day in the fields.

W.C. Boyce, Franklin County soil conservationist, says owners of fish ponds in that county are fertilizing them to increase the crop of fish. S.V. Hill and D.C. Hicks used 200 pounds of high analysis fertilizer, followed by 50 pounds of nitrate of soda, just as if they had been growing a corn crop in the old days. The surface of these ponds covers slightly over one acre. The two ponds were stocked only last fall, but fish have been observed during the summer which would weigh as much as one pound each. The purpose of the fertilizing is to cause the water to produce more food for the fish. As the fish increase in size, they require more food.

In Guilford County, G.T. Rumley of the Madison township say he will construct the ideal farm fish pond this fall. The entire water line around his pond will be excavated to a depth of two feet so as to provide for good fishing over the entire area. Then after the dam has been completed, he will run terraces so as to divert all surplus water from the crop land, within the drainage area, away from the pond. The water supply for the pond comes from a strong spring and a little extra surface water draining from a patch of woods and some pasture land. Mr. Rumley will fertilize his pond, and he is getting his stock of bass and bream from the fish and wildlife service through the local Haw River Soil Conservation district.

S.R. Clinard of Oak View section of Guilford completed his pond in early August. It is located only about 200 yards from his home and about one-half of the 40-acre watershed draining into the pond is in woodland. The other half, in open land, is terraced. Mr. Clinard is arranging a crop rotation so that the silt will not wash down into the pond, filling it up and ruining it. J.R. Warf of Summerfield, Route 1, built a pond about a year ago, and says he sees the need right now for better terracing and more careful disposal of the water washing down from nearby cultivated fields.

Thirty-six thousand small blue-gill bream were delivered in early September to Guilford farmers in the Haw River Soil district. These 36,000 blue-gill bream were planted in 46 acres of farm ponds. Bass will be added to each one next spring to complete the stocking and the owners say they will fertilize their ponds next summer to increase the food supply in the water.

George Setliff and Ira Powell of the Oregon Hill community, and A.J. Martin of the Stephens Cross Roads section of Rockingham County, received fish for their ponds in middle September. R.A. Baughan of the Dan Valley section has just completed a small pond for fish production and for supplying fresh water for his livestock. As soon as he had completed his dam, Mr. Baughan immediately seeded it and all exposed areas around the pond to a mixture of redtop, orchard grass, dallis grass, and small amount of white Dutch clover.

In all, about 25 farm ponds were built in Rockingham County this summer, and while this is quite a good record, the local farmers say they will continue to build as they have the opportunity.

Alamance farmers in the Haw River district, also have been busy building ponds. The ponds will be stocked next spring. Henry Thiel, soil conservation specialist in Alamance County, reports that 16,000 bream were delivered to 12 good farmers just recently. Bass will be delivered to these same pond owners come the spring.

Don Matheson, Orange County agent, says that Miller Brothers, who operate a large poultry farm about two miles from Hillsboro, freezing the extra fish which they take from their one-acre farm pond. The last catch was about 50 pounds of mixed bass, pike and perch. These are all quickly frozen and placed in the home freezer cabinet. One of the bass weighed four pounds.

Johnston County farmers also have become interested in farm ponds. They plan to use them both for fish and for a water supply for the livestock. In the past, the building of these ponds in that county has been difficult due to the lack of necessary equipment, but M.A. (Happy) Morgan reports that J.J. Broadhurst of Smithfield and Woodley Warrick of Selma have both bought large tractor equipment and that this is available now for the construction of ponds throughout the county.

But this farm fish pond idea stretches on into the southwest section of the state. Many Gaston County farmers are building new ponds working on them in their spare time and in off season. Such a farmer is G.W. Stone of Stanley, Route 1, who has his pond staked out and all specifications for his dam. Mr. Stone says the pond will cover an acre of ground and will be a pleasant addition to his farm. Dan J. Stowe of Belmont and Elbert Robinson of Gastonia, Route 3, are two other men who are building new ponds. Mr. Stowe has begun work on the two-acre pond, and Elbert has ambitious plans for a 15-acre pond. Both are to be stocked with bream and bass and fertilized so that the fish will really grow.