AQUATIC PLANTS IN POND CULTURE. 23 



torn is still wet the piles of Chara are removed to the shore with 

 pitchforks. In the removal of such plants as water lilies, rushes, 

 cat-tails, etc., the ordinary scythe is used, but this method is resorted 

 to as little as possible because of the tracks made in the bottom of the 

 pond and the muddying of the water. 



At the Mammoth Spring station the method of drawing ponds and 

 removing vegetation is somewhat similar to that pursued at North- 

 ville. If it is desired to remove fish less than 2 inches in length, all 

 of the vegetation is raked out upon a raft and poled to the bank for 

 subsequent removal by horse and wagon. If larger fingerlings are in 

 the pond, the vegetation is first cleared as thoroughly as possible by 

 a similar method from a space about 100 feet in diameter around the 

 outlet drain. A channel is then cleared from the outlet of the pond 

 to its inlet. Ordinarily this preliminary work requires the services 

 of two men to each pond for two days. The ponds range from three- 

 fourths to 1^ acres in area. On the third day the water is drawn 

 down to the cleared space near the outlet. As it recedes the Chara is 

 raked into windrows, the men working in from 1 to 2 feet of water, 

 thus keeping a clear channel ahead of the water line. Windrows are 

 preferred to stacks, because the fish have a means of retreat through 

 the channel formed between the rows. 



Four or five men are engaged in the work at pond-drawing time. 

 Perhaps by 3 p. m. of the third day the water will have been drawn 

 down to the " kettle," the 100-foot cleared pool. If the pond contains 

 adult fish, they are at this time removed by sweeping a coarse-meshed 

 seine through the pool. The following morning the water tempera- 

 ture and other conditions are favorable for the removal of the finger- 

 ling stock. 



A raft is preferred to a boat, because it will carry a large load of 

 vegetation and the water quickly drains from it. It is homemade, 

 12 by 16 feet. The outer framework of 2 by 12 inch planks is 

 fastened together by 6-inch bolts and then the inner planks are 

 slipped into place. The raft is supported by six 10-gallon iron- 

 bound kegs wired to the framework. The round holes in the center 

 of each end plank are for the insertion of stakes to hold the raft in 

 place while loading. 



The claim of superiority of a raft over the boat ordinarily used 

 for the same purpose seems well founded and leads to the suggestion 

 that a shallow scow of dimensions to suit conditions, with deck and 

 side rails, would also allow the water to drain off as the deck is loaded 

 with vegetation and would be more easily handled. Rapid movement 

 in the comparatively small ponds of the fish-culturist not being 

 essential, trucks might be attached to the bottom of the scow for 

 convenience in drawing it ashore or from one pond to another. 



At the San Marcos station the removal of aquatic vegetation is 

 accomplished with an ordinary scythe, the men going into the water 

 and cutting the gi'owth as closely as possible. For cutting the heavier 

 vegetation at a distance from the embankments a scythe is sometimes 

 attached to a piece of three-quarter-inch iron piping from 10 to 30 

 feet in length, the latter being spread at the end to hold the shank of 

 the scythe, which is riveted to it with two small bolts. Hand rakes, 

 especially made from 4-tined hayforks, are then used, care being 

 taken to examine each rakeful of foliage for young fish. An espe- 



