Living outside the city becomes prestigious and comfortable. Potato fields, greenhouses with tomatoes and carrot beds are a thing of the past. People try to make their leisure time more pleasant and come up with something new. One of the areas of practical and interesting work is fish. At the dacha, it is bred in ponds of various sizes. Making a homemade pond for this purpose is not difficult. However, before picking up a shovel, it will not be superfluous to familiarize yourself with the pitfalls of the process.
Why are fish bred at their summer cottage?
A pond on a personal plot is created for various purposes: to complement the landscape design, provide plants with water or organize a place for swimming. Why not use the pond in the country to breed fish?
The owner of the site may be the unwitting owner of an uncomfortable terrain: a ravine, a lowland or a drainage ditch. It is not rational to throw all your strength into eliminating unevenness. It is easier and cheaper to adapt it for keeping fish. Preparing a pond from scratch is a difficult task, requiring competent calculations and physical effort. High groundwater contributesfeeding a makeshift lake and allow you to exclude waterproofing measures. Such soils are not suitable for growing gardens, and the fish in the dacha in the pond will compensate for this problem.
About fish farming
A serious approach to growing fish on the site brings moral and material satisfaction. The productivity of small ponds is much higher than the huge ones. A pond from 20 to 50 m2 allows you to keep up to 15 species of fish weighing up to 150 q/ha.
Fish in the country grows 1-2 years before reaching the marketable mass. Peled weighs 70-120 g by the end of the first year. Carp reaches 300-350 g for the same period in a warm reservoir with a rare planting. Silver carps also differ in rapid growth. And tench and crucian carp will gain a comparable mass only in three years. For this reason, they begin to grow them from the age of one, buying them in nurseries for fish.
Benefits of farming fish on the plot
Growing fish on the site is not comparable to industrial production in terms of volumes, methods and conditions of detention. Reservoirs are, as a rule, multi-purpose. Fish in the country is not grown for the purpose of making huge profits. It serves to create beauty, create comfort and peace of mind for the owners of the site.
This is also a sign of well-being, allows you to stand out from others. Not everyone has a pond with live fish in their summer cottage. The advantage of this solution lies in the fact that the quality of the water is under control.pesticides and industrial effluents will not fall. A pond in the country for breeding fish is a source of wholesome and natural food for the family.
For the objectivity of the description, it is worth mentioning that breeding fish in your own pond requires some effort. The owner will need knowledge of fish farming, attentiveness, endurance and love for nature.
Main patterns of reservoir construction
How to make a lake in the country for fish yourself? You should start by studying the basic rules regarding this structure:
- Reservoirs of a small area require more attention, because a natural biocenosis is not formed in them. They look like a big puddle. A huge pond will not be affordable for many. In addition, not every site can allocate a suitable site for it. The golden mean between these options is in the range from 25 to 50 m2.
- It is worth choosing a place for the future reservoir carefully. A necessary condition is the presence of shaded and illuminated areas of the water surface. The pond located in the lowland will be flooded by rain and melt water.
- A special relief is created at the bottom of the pond, combining areas with different layers of water. They are arranged in steps, separated by ledges.
- Choose the soil based on the type of fish. Carp require hard rock (pebbles, coarse sand, crushed granite).
- Small fish, having a length of no more than 15 cm, need from 50 liters of water. The volume of the pond and the number of individuals are calculated based on thisnorms.
- An important addition that the pond needs: do-it-yourself fish breeding in the country is impossible without installing a filter pump. With it, water is purified from secretions and its flowering is prevented.
- If the fish will be in the pond all year round, then it needs a wintering well. It can be organized using a large container, which is buried in the center.
Fish Species
The fish is chosen based on the goals that the owner faces. And also from the existing pond and other conditions. Ornamental fish are widespread: gold and koi. Growing fish in the country of these species is carried out in small ponds. They stick to the surface and take food from their hands.
For economic purposes, carp, crucian carp and tench are bred, which live in the depths. The list of species used for keeping in ponds is significant: silver carp, grass carp, perch, carp, trout, etc.
Pond with concrete base
The shape of a pond with a concrete base can be arbitrary. The most optimal are rounded options, for example, oval or pear-shaped. The bottom of the future reservoir is poured with concrete mortar on the prepared pillow. Strength and durability of the structure will add reinforcement with wire. A mesh with a mesh side of 15 cm is laid out of it. Before concreting, a reinforced concrete pipe is installed, which will serve as a winter hut for fish. Its lower end is buried below the level of winter waters in the ground.
Concrete pond with their ownhands
Live fish in the country needs a cozy home. Steps for making a pond with a concrete base:
- The soil is selected according to the sketch. Terraces and recesses are being made. The surface is cleared of protruding roots and litter. Preparing places for aquatic vegetation. A lattice of reinforcing bars is laid over the entire surface. They are fastened together with knitting wire. The metal skeleton will be embedded in the concrete.
- M400 cement, coarse sand and crushed stone are mixed in a ratio of 1:2:3. The resulting mixture is poured into the bottom and carefully tamped to prevent the appearance of voids. They wait for it to set and install the formwork for the walls. The side surfaces of the pond should not be sheer, and their thickness is less than 12 cm.
- Waterproofing if possible. On a layer of concrete that has begun to set, put a couple of layers of roofing material and pour the solution. In hot weather, the surface is protected from premature drying by damp material, sawdust or hay.
- The pond for fish in the country is almost ready. A hose is brought to it, hiding it among the stones to give it naturalness. Fill with clean water.
- A pipe is being installed on one of the banks, which will serve as protection against overflow. Through it, excess water will be removed from the reservoir.
Pond without lining
If groundwater is located close to the surface and soil on the site, then you can make a pond without concreting. They create ditches, the walls of which are covered with a layer of clay or polyethylenefilm. Such a solution is easy to build, but requires regular monitoring and supportive measures. A trench dug in sandy soil must be coated with a layer of clay at least 10 cm thick. Sod or straw is placed on top.
Pond from a ravine
How to make a pond with fish in the country without big investments? With my own hands from a small natural ravine. To do this, it is corrected and improved. They operate approximately according to this scheme:
- Natural depression increases in size.
- Create a dam out of the ground. To do this, the soil is poured in thin layers (up to 20 cm) and rammed. Humidification from a watering can improves the quality of work. The height of the partition is created 50 cm above the expected water level.
- Establish a groove through which flood waters can pass without destroying the dam. The bypass channel is located around the earthen partition.
- Concrete gutters are sometimes placed in the ditches through which water flows in and out. The bottom and sloping parts of the pond are optionally reinforced with a metal mesh, stones, turf, etc. The dam is made wide and covered with a layer of sand.
- The filled pond is kept empty for 1-2 months. During this time, a silty deposit forms in it, and the plants take root. After this period, the reservoir is emptied and clean water is poured. Only now you can let fish into the pond.
To equip your own pond in your summer cottage is not an easy task. The information provided will help owners better navigate this issue and avoid manyerrors. Proper organization of feeding and keeping fish is the key to success.
