Once the water in your fish pond is ready with vegetation and food, it's time to consider the fish. What breed fish your DIY fish farm will raise depends on a plethera of items. The size of your setup, intentions for the fish and your experience will all determine what you breed.

Typical fish raised by fish farms include salmon, catfish, tilapia, cod, carp and trout. At any rate other kinds can be raised as stock, the trout is the finest fish for a beginner to start with. It's among the strongest of the fish raised on a fish farm and they have got a super market worth.

Salmon, though an excellent market fish, is a bigger undertaking for an amateur. The initial breeding of this species fish is nearly the same as trout. However, these fish need some time living in the ocean. This means they may need additional facilities to get them there, depending on the location of the fish farm.

In addition to the species of fish you intend to primarily breed on your fish farm, consider some secondary species. One species to consider is perch. The fry make an great food source for other fish, especially trout and offer a bit of diversity to your pond. Keep in mind that perch are very zealous breeders and should be kept under control.

Once you have decided on what types of fish to include in your fish farm, it's time to get some ova. There are a couple of ways that you can do this; collecting and and fertilizing the ova or purchasing pre-fertilized eggs.

Wild fish eggs can be collected and then fertilized by the aquaculturist. The ova from a female fish are taken out and mixed with the milt of the males. This process requires that the aquaculturist have a very good knowledge of his species. Knowing when to collect the eggs is critical or they won't be fertilized.

Pre-fertilized, or eyed, ova are the easiest, and more reliable way, especially for the first-timer. Quite a few fish farmers begin with ova that are already fertilized. These can be bought quite readily and arrive when they are almost ready to hatch, avoiding the harvesting, fertilization and protecting of the eggs.

Select the type of fish you breed on your DIY fish farm carefully. Keep in mind that climate, location and the size of your setup will greatly determine what you breed.

Also keep in mind that diversity in your ponds is essential to a healthy fish population. Be careful about what you introduce. Don't over-stock your pond with any one kind of fish for the best balance.

In the next DIY fish farming article in this series, you'll discover the basics of setting up rearing ponds, boxes and hatching trays. If you build and install these the right way, you'll have better success.

Until next time...