40 PBACTICAL CARP CULTURE. 



opportunities and necessities. No pike or game fish should be allowed 

 either in a hatching or mixed culture pond. 



Another method of securing a crop of young fish practiced by small 

 culturists in Europe and America, and finding favor and being practiced 

 by some of the fish commissions of the States, is to place along the margin 

 of the pond boughs of trees at the spawning season. The carp spawn 

 among the boughs, the eggs are adhesive and attach themselves to the 

 Jeaves. These boughs are examined every day, at a time when the carp 

 are not engaged in spawning, and those that have a fair proportion of 

 eggs on are removed to a small shallow pond of 12 feet square or upwards, 

 and placed in the water. This is continued until the carp are through 

 spawning. The eggs hatch in the small improvised pond, and the young 

 carp are fed there until they attain the size of 1 1-2 to 2 inches long, or as 

 long as they give evidence of doing well and growing rapidly. When for 

 any reason they do not seem to be doing well they should l/e removed to 

 the larger pond. They require but little water and lood for the first two 

 months of their life, though in so small a pond they should be fed regu- 

 larly (see chapter on artificial feeding). At the end of the two months they 

 can betransfered to the larger pond as they will have passed beyond the 

 reach of the greater part of their enemies. 



In a new pond used for mixed culture there is generally little or no 

 vegetation about the margins. The boughs will serve a good purpose here 

 by being placed about the margins, even if there is no small pond to re- 

 move them to. The leaves will catch the eggs and hold them until they 

 hatch. In fact in such ponds any floating material such as grass, hay, 

 leaves of water plants, fine chips from the wood yard, anything except 

 wide or heavy boards, will be found better than nothing. We recommend 

 these only in an emergency. The natural water plants are, of course, the 

 very best material for catching and holding the eggs. And there is no 

 excuse for a pond being without this vegetation the second year. 



