In order to grow natural food organisms like plankton and allow water chemistry to stabilize, fertilizers should be added before fry are introduced to the nursery pond. Ideally, a layer of sludge at the bottom of the pond should be able to absorb these minerals and fertilizers and slowly leach them back into the water overtime.
Adding lime to your nursery pond will help increase the alkalinity of athe water and harden the water's makeup, making variations more difficult. Lime also increases the amount of available nutrients by encouraging sedimentation and mineralization of organic matter and waste.
