[bekko]

Good you mentioned ag lime ranskye. With brand-new ponds, KFG should get a soil test and liming recommendation. This is liming to control pH, not quick lime for killing potential predators. I know you do not want to interact with the gov'ment KFG, but the County Extension Service is where most people take their soil sample. There is a good commercial lab in Texas:
http://txplant-soillab.com/
There is another in South Florida, but I cannot remember the name... A&L Laboratories or something like that?

You can do a quick-and-dirty (no pun intended) soil pH test by:
* put an equal volume of pond soil and water in a jar (at least 100 ml each);
* cap the jar and shake vigorously for several minutes;
* lay a half-dozen layers of paper towels in a funnel and set the funnel upright in another jar;
* pour some clean water through the towels to wash out anything that might affect the pH and discard this water;
* now pour the soil and water mixture into the funnel;
* after enough water has seeped through the towels, run a pH test on it;
* you can use pH test strips, a pH meter, test kit, whatever;
* if the water dripping through the funnel is too orange (has too much clay in it), you will need to use a better filter paper instead of paper towels.

If the sample pH is less than about 6.5, you should worry and look into it further. You might need to work up to 1,000 pounds per acre of agricultural lime into the pond bottom


-steve