Everyone engages in one form of business or the other principally to make profits even NGO’s with free funds from donor agencies have specific areas towards which this funds are applied and targets (which forms the profit for this types of organisations) are set to be achieved.
The same goes for the aquaculture fish farming business. The common targets for an aquaculture based business could be “achieving the highest (numerical and weight) crop yield (fish) per unity area of pond”. It is the total number and total weight of fish harvested that determines the profit margin of the business.
It must however be said that certain simple management regimes must be put in place to ensure that these targets are achieved.

I will attempt to explain this in this discussion as usual comments from operators are welcomed.

TIP 1 STOCKING:
Quality of Fingerlings/Juveniles
It is important to know that the quality of the juvenile (young fish) stocked has direct effect on the quality of fish to be harvested.
Therefore any good farmer will ensure that he buys or produces the best quality fingerlings/juveniles for stoking production ponds. Unfortunately mere looking at fingerlings/juveniles will not tell you if it will perform (translate food to flesh) in the pond during the production process.
A farmer wanting to procure fingerlings/juveniles should ensure that the pedigree of the producer is fully ascertained.

Quantity of fingerlings/juveniles
Ponds have carrying capacities or stocking density that is the number of fish/unit area of pond. This also depends on the type of system employed.
EATHEN PONDS: 10 and 40 fingerlings/juveniles per unit area.
FLOW THROUGH SYSTEM: 100 fingerlings/juveniles per unit area
RE-CIRCULATORY SYSTEM: 350 fingerlings/juveniles per unit area
An attempt to hold beyond this may result in overcrowding which will result in competition and it’s attendant adverse effects.

Tip 2 JUVENILE ACLAMATISATION
Before stocking fish, water temperature in the fingerlings tank must be the same as the pond water. This can be done by placing juveniles and transportation media (containers) into the production ponds. This allows temperature of pond water that of water in the transportation media to become same the young fish is allowed to swim out into the pond. Sharp temperature variation can lead to thermal shock, which is lethal to catfish

TIP 3 SORTING:
Catfish grow differentially as a result of varied genetic quality of the fish species. Fish start to have their varied genetic quality from egg stage (From different egg sizes) through hatching stage till maturity into adult hood. Therefore, the differential growth pattern becomes evident once fish is stocked. These phenomenon, which cause the emergence of oversized fish (shooters) among their peers predispose fish stock to cannibalism.
The situation can thus, be well managed through sorting (every fortnight) for the first two months.
Shooters are separated from the stock.

Fish Pond Maintenance is essential to keeping you pond and the habitat healthy especially in the tropics. If you have a pond, you may already be enjoying the sounds of splashing water and the colors of water lettuce and purple hyacinth flowers. You can see your fish darting underwater from lily pad to lily pad. Occasionally, a bright dragonfly will buzz through the air. While your pond appears to be a picture of serenity, there are some delicate and complicated relationships taking place between water, plants and animals. In order to continue to keep your pond happy and healthy, you will have to perform routine pond maintenance.

The Water
Water quality is arguably the most important part of pond maintenance. Unhealthy water leads to a sick pond. Unfortunately, you can't always know your pond water's health by eyeballing it. Clear water can have unseen problems lurking below the surface.

Here are some water issues that you should monitor:

* Chemicals such as ammonia and nitrates are natural byproducts of fish waste and can be toxic in a pond.
* Chlorine from tap water can kill fish.
* The pH levels of a pond should be between 6.8 and 7.4. The pH measurement tells you how acidic or alkaline your water is. Measurements on either side of 6.8 and 7.4 can lead to dead fish and plants.
* High levels of salt, either natural or from winter ice melt, can be a killer.

As your pond matures, bacteria will kick in to help your pond stay in balance by chomping up many of the bad elements in your water. Until this happens, you will probably need chemicals to help the process along.

If you have a new pond, use a test kit about once a week to check the levels of elements in your water. In a more mature pond, you'll only need to test every three to four weeks.

Siphon off between 10% and 20% of your pond's water every month and replace it with fresh water. Remember to use a chlorine treatment whenever you add water.

Pond Pumps and Filters
Pumps should be checked every week or two and cleaned. During the spring and summer growing seasons, or any time that algae blooms appear, your pumps may be working overtime to handle blockages caused by plant growth. In this case, you may have to clean your pump more than once a week. The same rule applies during the fall when leaves can get caught in the pumps if you don't skim your pond frequently.

Check your pond filter every four to five weeks to make sure that it is working properly. Filters should be operating 24 hours a day because any down time can lead to the death of bacteria that are helping to break down unwanted substances in your pond. Follow the manufacturer's instructions on cleaning your filter so that you don't accidentally eliminate the beneficial bacteria that live in it.

If you don't clean your pumps and filters frequently enough, they will burn out and you will have to replace them. They can be expensive to replace, and the balance in your pond will be thrown off while filters and pumps are out of commission. It also takes time for the bacteria in a filter to do their job effectively. While you're waiting, algae and other undesirables can get a foothold, leaving you with a mess to clean up. Routine pump and filter maintenance will save you a good deal of work in the long run.

Debris
Skim floating debris, such as leaves, from your pond on a weekly basis. It's best to keep falling nuts and twigs out of the pond as well, as decomposing organic material can alter the water's pH. If needed, set up a screen over the pond to catch falling seeds and nuts.

Pond Plants
During the spring and summer, plant growth will explode in your pond. While plants are pretty, they can end up strangling your fish and clogging your pumps. Plants should only cover 50% to 70% of your pond's surface. If your plants cover more than that, remove them.

In addition to plants, algae tend to bloom during warm months. If your pond is balanced, your fish will eat the algae and keep it under control. If you do not have enough fish, you can use chemicals to control algae. Be careful with this, as algae are a source of food for your fish. In addition, killing all of the algae in your pond will give it an artificial appearance. Don't you see algae growing on rocks in natural ponds?

If you don't feed your fish and have the right number of fish for your pond's area, algae shouldn't be a problem. Shading the pond with plant growth can help to keep algae under control as well.

Trim back dead or diseased water plants weekly for a healthier pond.

Fish
In general, you should only add about one fish for every square foot of surface space of your pond. If you add any more fish than this, your pond's ecosystem will be overwhelmed.

Fish are cold-blooded, so they will be more active, and need more food, during warm months than during cold months. With the right mix of plants and fish, you shouldn't need to feed them at all. If you must feed them, give them just enough food to stay healthy and never overfeed. Excess food will decompose and ruin the water quality.

Yearly Pond Maintenance
Once a year, you should clean out your pond completely. This will prevent sediments from building up in your pond and reducing the area in which your fish can swim. Hopefully, this will just be a matter of removing your plants and dredging the bottom of your pond for debris. If you have ignored this for several years and have not skimmed your pond, you may have to remove both the fish and the plants from the pond and drain it in order to clean it.

Facebook Launches Free Mobile Sms Service For Testing!

As part of its plan in building a big and better network for its users, Facebook has partnered with Binu SMS to launch a mobile application that can be used for sending sms to any mobile operator in the world.

This service which is now open to public testing will be available in 85 countries, including US and the UK.

This is contained in a release by the Network Associate in Facebook, Cutts on 18-08-2011. Nigeria is privileged to be among the countries where this free apps testing is available so send unlimited sms from your fb account while this service lasts!

Read more from facebook below.
Facebook Mobile SMS Apps

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As part of its plan in building a big and better network for its users, Facebook has partnered with Binu SMS to launch a mobile application that can be used for sending sms to any mobile operator in the world.

This service which is now open to public testing will be available in 85 countries, including US and the UK.

This is contained in a release by the Network Associate in Facebook, Cutts on 18-08-2011. Nigeria is privileged to be among the countries where this free apps testing is available so send unlimited sms from your fb account while this service lasts!

Read more from facebook below.
Facebook Mobile SMS Apps

As part of its plan in building a big and better network for its users, Facebook has partnered with Binu SMS to launch a mobile application that can be used for sending sms to any mobile operator in the world.

This service which is now open to public testing will be available in 85 countries, including US and the UK.

This is contained in a release by the Network Associate in Facebook, Cutts on 18-08-2011. Nigeria is privileged to be among the countries where this free apps testing is available so send unlimited sms from your fb account while this service last