{"id":214,"date":"2025-07-05T00:45:17","date_gmt":"2025-07-05T00:45:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.city2farm.com\/?p=214"},"modified":"2025-07-05T00:51:06","modified_gmt":"2025-07-05T00:51:06","slug":"digging-our-tilapia-ponds-february-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.city2farm.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/05\/digging-our-tilapia-ponds-february-2025\/","title":{"rendered":"Digging Our Tilapia Ponds \u2013 February 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_76 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-light-blue ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-5'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.city2farm.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/05\/digging-our-tilapia-ponds-february-2025\/#The_Plan\" >The Plan<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-5'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.city2farm.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/05\/digging-our-tilapia-ponds-february-2025\/#Getting_to_Work\" >Getting to Work<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-5'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.city2farm.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/05\/digging-our-tilapia-ponds-february-2025\/#Digging_Day_by_Day\" >Digging Day by Day<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-5'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.city2farm.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/05\/digging-our-tilapia-ponds-february-2025\/#Job_Done\" >Job Done<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-5'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.city2farm.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/05\/digging-our-tilapia-ponds-february-2025\/#Whats_Next\" >What\u2019s Next?<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n<p>In mid-February 2025, we kicked off one of the first major steps on our land in Chumphon Buri, <strong>digging two large ponds<\/strong> dedicated to raising tilapia. No complicated systems, no mixed use, just solid, straightforward fish farming.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_Plan\"><\/span>The Plan<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p>We designed two ponds, each measuring <strong>10 meters wide, 25 meters long, and 3.5 meters deep<\/strong>. Why two? Simple: it gives us more control. We can separate different age groups, experiment with stocking densities, or rest one pond while the other is in production. Flexibility is everything when you\u2019re starting out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Getting_to_Work\"><\/span>Getting to Work<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p>On <strong>February 16th<\/strong>, we brought in a <strong>Kobelco SK140S excavator<\/strong> to start digging. This machine hit the sweet spot: strong enough to dig deep and fast, but not so massive that it became overkill for our plot. The soil here is mostly hard-packed clay, which isn\u2019t fun to work with, but it\u2019s perfect for sealing ponds naturally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Digging_Day_by_Day\"><\/span>Digging Day by Day<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Day one<\/strong> was all about opening up the first pond. The excavator made quick work of the top layers. As we hit deeper clay, progress slowed slightly, but nothing unexpected. We stuck to our planned dimensions and kept a close eye on the shape and depth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We didn\u2019t go for straight vertical walls. Instead, we cut a <strong>gentle slope<\/strong> into the sides. This helps prevent erosion, makes maintenance easier, and just makes more sense long-term. It might mean a bit more digging now, but it avoids headaches later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>By day two<\/strong>, we had moved on to the second pond. Same size, same method. We used string lines and depth markers to double-check everything. Once you&#8217;re three meters deep, you don\u2019t want surprises.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Job_Done\"><\/span>Job Done<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p>By the <strong>end of day two<\/strong>, both ponds were fully excavated and shaped. We piled the excess soil along the sides, which we\u2019ll use later for landscaping and creating raised walking paths.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>No drama, no delays\u2014just solid progress. And standing there at the edge of the ponds, it finally felt real. This isn\u2019t just a patch of land anymore. It\u2019s the beginning of our tilapia farm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe title=\"Drilling for water and digging 2 big ponds on our land.\" width=\"840\" height=\"473\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/m8ratl72RAU?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Whats_Next\"><\/span>What\u2019s Next?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p>Next up: compacting the bottom and letting nature do the sealing. Then we\u2019ll bring in water and begin cycling the ponds before introducing the first batch of fingerlings. This is small-scale fish farming, but we\u2019re doing it right from the ground up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>These ponds will be the backbone of our fish operation at <strong>Ban Rahan Fish &amp; Greenery Farm<\/strong>\u2014and this was just the beginning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In mid-February 2025, we kicked off one of the first major steps on our land in Chumphon Buri, digging two[&#8230;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":220,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-214","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-farm"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.city2farm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/214","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.city2farm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.city2farm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.city2farm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.city2farm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=214"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.city2farm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/214\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":221,"href":"https:\/\/www.city2farm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/214\/revisions\/221"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.city2farm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/220"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.city2farm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=214"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.city2farm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=214"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.city2farm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=214"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}