The Middlebury register and Addison County journal. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1883-1885, 1883-01-05
THE FARM AND HOUSEHOLD.



Fish Food for Farmers.
The introduction of German carp
into the United States, fish that will
thrive and grow fat and savory on de-
caying vegetation, is progressive
step toward utilizing the millions of
small water tracts that disligure the
farms of the country. 1t is a rare ex-
ception when a hundred-acre farm has
not a pond, or pool, where fish cul~
ture can be made to flourish, if not
with the beauty, with more than the
value of the harvest acre.
Fresh fish for breakfast is a great
rarity upon a farmers table, This is
the more strange when we consider
that many of our most fertile farms,
especially those east of the Allegheny
belt, lie along the great water courses.
or are furrowed by streams that will
yield bountifr,l supply of coarse, but
good fish food.
Fish-culture, by its rapid, economic
progress during the last decade, has
placed at the will of the farmer u
means of providing for his daily needs
which ranks in Importance with the
raising of ordinary farm products for
home consumption. Why the farmer
has not found this out long ago it is
easy to explain. The pursuit of fish
culture has been almost exclusively
confined to those who may be classed,
without offense, as professional fish
culturists. These gentlemen have
made fish culture an art, from knOwl-
edge of which, the farmer, with his
acres of water area, all ready for the
seed, has been debarred. Yet all these
years fsh-raising, for domestic use
has remained one Of the simplest prob
lens that ever a farmer was called
upon to solve.
Given pond, few fish, shovel, a
few hours labor, with twelve months
of patient waiting, and you have your
crop, which, with care, will become an
annual one, without the use of plow,
harrow or seed bag. Take the carp as
an illustration. If you have natural
pond, covering at least half an acre,
with an outlet and inlet, it's greatest
depth at least eight feet, with shelly
ing margin, you have your fish farm.
Send to the fish commission of your
State for a supply of carp, which will
be furnished to you free Of cost, except
that of transportation. Place them in
your pond, feeding, if needed, with the
scraps from the kitchen, or better still,
with the curd of sour milk. In twelve
months there will be crop ready for
table use.
Fish, like cereals, must have pro-
lection. Before planting the carp, see
that the pond is cleared of all other
kinds of fish, and of frogs, both of
which will soon eat up the young fish,
as well as the spawn of the larger ones.
The young fish have other enemies,
such us the kingfisher, the blue heron,
ducks, water rats, etc, against which
they will need protection.
Put no other fish in the pond with
carp, but if you crave varied fish diet,
and have another natural pond, or the
chance of making one, put a few dozen
catfish or bullheads in it. This fish
protects it's young, and increases with
great rapidity. In separate pond
may be planted the large-mouth
black bass, or the yellow perch may
be raised. All of the above named fish
will live and thrive in ponds with a
muddy bottom, and their growth in
size and numbers will be dependent
upon the food and fresh water supply.
The carp is a vegetable feeder, and
will require little food so long as the
pond is well filled with aquatic plants.
The other fish feed on minnows, frogs,
the larvae of water insects, fresh
water crustacea, and such other animal
food as comes within the reach of
their rapacious jaws. BY the judicious
culture of a small frog preserve, sufli-
cient food for the black bass can be
raised with surplus of delicious frog
legs for private consumption.-Ameri
can AgricuituriSt.