Catfish farming is very profitable, the market continues to grow and more and more in demand. Catfish farming will be very profitable if done well, intensive and consistent. For those of you who want to do Cultivation Catfish, the following I will convey the procedure of good catfish culture.
In the cultivation of catfish, 2 things to watch out for are Seeding and Enlargement. Both of these are very related and very necessary to know together so that the cultivation can be maximized. The steps of cultivating catfish can be seen in the following article.
Steps How to Conduct the Cultivation of Catfish:
- Pond preparation
Making ponds should pay attention to environmental conditions and labor. Types of ponds commonly used in the cultivation of catfish are ground pools, cement ponds, tarpaulin ponds, floating net and keramba. But in this article we only discuss the pool of land only, given the type of pond is most widely used by fish farmers.
The pool to be used should be dried for 3 (three) - 7 (seven) days depending on the heat of the sun until the surface of the ground is cracked. It is intended that the evil microorganisms and the seeds of disease die. after being dried, the surface of the soil is purged, the rotten part of the soil is thrown away so that the ammonia of the soil is lost.
After drying, liming is done to balance soil pH and eradicate pathogenic microorganisms. The type of lime used is dolomite or lime tohor. Liming is done in a way evenly spread over the bottom surface of the pond. After being chalked with lime, turn the soil with a hoe for the lime to seep inside. The dose required for liming the bottom of the pond is 250-750 grams per square meter, or depending on the degree of soil acidity. The more acid the soil the more lime is needed.
After that, fertilization is done. The fertilizer used is organic fertilizer plus urea and TSP. Type of organic fertilizer used can be manure or compost. Dose of organic fertilizer as much as 250-500 gram per square meter, urea fertilizer 15 gram per square meter and TSP 10 gram per square meter. Fertilization of the bottom of the pool aims to provide nutrients for biota such as phytoplankton and worms. Animals or plants are useful for natural catfish food. The pool is ready for water.
Pool filling should be done gradually. After the pond is fertilized, fill it with water up to 30-40 cm. At these altitudes, sunlight can still penetrate to the bottom of the pond and allow the bottom biota of the pond like phytoplankton to grow well. Ponds that have been overgrown with phytoplankton water will be greenish. After one week, new catfish seeds ready stocked. Furthermore, pool water is added periodically in accordance with the growth of catfish to the ideal height. The ideal water level for catfish farming is 100-120 cm.
- Selection of superior seeds
In order for maximum results, we must use superior seeds. The seeds stocked should be really healthy seeds. Characteristics of healthy seeds agile movement, there are no defects or injuries on the surface of the body, free from disease seeds and swimming movement normal. To test the swimming motion, try to place the fish in the water currents, if the fish is challenging the direction of the water current means the movement of the swimming is normal. The size of the seed for the cultivation of catfish should have a length of about 5-7 cm. Keep the size flat so that fish can grow and grow in unison. From seeds of that size, within the maintenance period of 2.5-3.5 months will be obtained catfish consumption size of 9-12 heads per kilogram.
Before the seeds are dispersed, adjust the climate to the seeds. Way, input the new seed comes with the container (bucket / jeriken) into the pond. Allow for 15 minutes to adjust the temperature of the seeds to the temperature of the pond as the new environment. Tilt the container and let the seeds out by itself. This method is useful to prevent stress on seeds.
Spread the seeds of catfish into the pond with a density of 200-400 heads per square meter. The better the quality of pond water, the higher the number of seeds that can be accommodated. Should not water height not more than 40 cm when the seeds are stocked. This keeps the fish seed reaching the surface of the water to take feed or breathe. The next pool filling is adjusted to the size of the fish body until it reaches the ideal water level.
- Feed catfish
A good feed should contain the nutrients needed by catfish. As carnivorous fish, catfish feed must contain animal protein. In general, nutrient content required catfish is protein (at least 30%), fat (4-16%), carbohydrates (15-20%), vitamins and minerals. Various pellets sold in the market on average already equipped with a description of the nutritional content. We live clever to choose which one can trust. Remember, do not buy an expired feed. If the feed is too expensive we can also make alternative feed, please read to make your own alternative cat feed.
Feed should be provided as needed. In general every day catfish require 3-6% of the weight of the body. How it is given based on fish weight every 10 days. For example, a catfish weighing 50 grams requires a feed of 2.5 grams (5% body weight) per head. Then every 10 days take samplingnya, then weigh and adjust again the amount of feed given. Two weeks before harvest, the percentage of feeding is reduced to 3% of body weight.
Feeding schedule should be tailored to the appetite of fish. Frequency 4-5 times a day. The frequency of feeding on small fish should be more frequent. Feeding time can be morning, noon, afternoon and evening. It must be remembered, catfish is a nocturnal animal, active at night. Consider more feeding in the afternoon and evening. Feed is provided with stocked. The giver must be observant to see the reaction of the fish. Give the feed when aggressive catfish eat the feed and stop when the fish already looks lazy to eat it.
In addition to the main feed, can be considered also to provide additional feed. Supplemental feeding is very helpful to save the cost of expenditure of feed which is enough to drain the bag. If our pond is close to the fish auction, consideration may be given to fresh trash fish. Trash fish is the result of a fish catch from the sea that is unfit for human consumption due to size or defect in its capture. Can also make a maggot from a mixture of tofu pulp.
Conch and chicken waste can be given by processing first. Processing can be done by boiling. Then separate the golden snail meat with its shell, then chopped. For the chicken clean the feathers before feeding on the catfish.
One thing to consider in providing catfish feed, do not get late or less. Because catfish has a cannibal nature, which likes to prey on the like. In case of shortage of feed, larger fish size will prey on smaller fish.