The Pike County Extension office will conduct a Pond Management Workshop on Saturday at Lake Simmie off Highway 231 south of Brundidge.

The workshop will be sponsored by Alabama Ag Credit.

“This will be a great opportunity for anyone who is interested in learning more about recreational pond management,” said Grant Lyons, Pike County Extension coordinator. “This workshop will cover aquatic plant identification, managing ponds for good fishing and controlling aquatic plant growth. We’ll also have an electrofishing demonstration, which is commonly referred to as pond shocking, with a results explanation.”

Lyons said some of the most common inquiries the Extension office receives involve ponds.

“We are often asked to make site visits to ponds for questions ranging from alkalinity and understanding PH to controlling plant growth,” he said.

“In addition, we receive phone calls about the kinds of fish to stock a pond. The Pond Management Workshop will address many of the common questions.”

Dr. Rusty Wright, Auburn University’s Department of Fisheries and Allied Aquacultures, will speak on managing ponds for good fishing and Claude Reeves, Extension specialist for aquaculture and recreational pond management, will discuss controlling aquatic growth in ponds.

“We appreciated Dr. Wright and Mr. Reeves taking time to speak to the group about these topics,” Lyons said.

The workshop will begin at 8:30 a.m. Saturday with registration and aquatic plant identification and will end at noon with a catfish lunch sponsored by Alabama Ag Credit.

“We would like to extend a special thanks to Alabama Ag Credit for supporting this workshop,” Lyons said. “They have been excellent partners in Extension and we look forward to continuing this relationship by offering educational programs like this in the future.”

Lyons also expressed appreciation to Lake Simmie for hosting the workshop.

“Lake Simmie is a beautiful facility and we look forward to our visit,” he said. “This is a regional workshop covering Barbour, Bullock, Coffee, Crenshaw and Dale counties. So it is an opportunity to showcase Pike County to others from the region.”

In the event of rain, the workshop will be moved to the indoor facility.

The Pond Management Workshop is offered at no charge but registration is required. To register, call the Extension offices at 566-0985.

Registration forms are available on the Pike County Extension office Facebook page.