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- #111
Good info, thank you.I know a bit about ponds, both stocked farm ponds and ornamental ponds, for my native environment in subtropical Florida. I have access to many exotic plants that wouldn’t overwinter where you are. Hydrilla is at the top of the list for a nutritious water weed that grows fast and can be thrown to chickens in its raw state right out of the pond. I doubt it will overwinter in your climate though. Although it might if your spring-fed pond retains a constant temperature year-round as springs in Florida do. You’ll need to check your state regs on its legality. Its prohibited in much of the country but easy to harvest in the wild where its already established.
In your habitat, do you have small, stagnant, ponds in your woods that produce fish? In Florida such sort of temporary pond or stream is common and there are many species that thrive without aeration. If you have similar species where you are, look into stocking those. See if you have warmouth:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warmouth
Hydrilla hasn't been reported in my state or neighboring states according to their invasive species websites. It is prohibited in several states in this region. It sounds well worth using if you already have it.
I haven't heard of warmouth but the link says rock bass fill a similar niche. We have rock bass in nearby lakes.
I don't think we get anything much like the pools you describe. The closest I can think of are the pools from snow melt; they don't last very long. Or what we call "wet spots" or "holes" - basically springs that don't quite make it to the ground surface. They are quite permanent but rarely have standing water.