While scanning for information on how to manage algae in my garden pond, I found a lot of information on the TPWD website on managing a recreational fishing pond, which a lot of people do here in Texas on their hobby ranches. A lot of them start out as stock "tanks", as Texas ranchers call farm ponds, for watering cattle, put then decide they want to put some fish in them.
Though I am a salty, I could see the draw of having your own private little body of water on your land, and walking out you back door and fishing in a couple of minutes.
Just curious, what part of the country your pond is in, on what land (your hobby farm, your back yard), and what you fish for (bluegill, bass, catfish, coelocanth).
Mine is about 3/4 of an acre… and it is about 50 feet from my door. It’s about minimum depth to sustain fish here in MO, at 7 feet deep at the deepest, but it has a slight leak, so in a dry summer it will drop up to 2 feet. I keep most of the grass around it mowed so that I can flyfish without worrying about my backcast. It has largemouth bass and bluegill, and one tremendous grass carp. I fish it two or three times a week for a half hour or so at a time, and usually keep enough bluegill, along with a few small bass, for 5 or 6 meals a year (and I LOVE fried bluegill, so it takes a lot to satisfy me).
in a few years, but as I remember, its best to keep the 'gills and return the bass, get bigger 'gills, big bass. Fried bluegill, or bream as we call them down here, catfish, crappie, and white bass, good eating all. Keep the oil hot momma, I've got fish.
you've got to keep a balance. Take too many bass, especially larger ones, then the bluegill will overpopulate and get too big, and there will be too many big bluegill too big for the smaller bass to eat. Take too few bass, and they eat all the bluegill, and start to get stunted.