My dad wanted to know if putting out straw or hay bales in the lake would offer a place for fish to hangout. I've heard of people using old Christmas trees. Any thoughts on the straw/hay bales??

Bait fish will locate to any structure in open water for protection. That is the reason you see people making artificial reefs of any kind. Where there is bait, there will be fish to feed on them. The structure creates a food chain of sorts.

I would imagine that hay bales would serve the same purpose, but their useful life may be shorter than that of trees. Not a bad idea though.

Hay bales would be cheaper than rocks or concrete but obviously would have a much shorter lifespan.

A fisheries biologist explained once that Christmas trees aren't always the best thing since the limbs are so close together. This lack of interstitial space prevents larger fish from using them for hiding areas, unlike a more open group of branches or limbs from an oak, and may impede smaller panfish or forage from using them as well.

I'd stick with more open limbs and brushtops, spaced apart instead of tightly bunched together.

Thanks for your input. Dad put up a 5 gallon fish feeder...just thinking, is it ok to fish near this thing?

Grizz, some of the oldtimers used to put out alfalfa hay. I don't know why alfalfa but it was considered better for crappies. Really don't think it was just for structure. Maybe minnows, shad, or whatever either ate it or the plankton or moss that grew to it. If I can find out, I will e-mail you. My son is a fisheries biologist and he might know.

The last time I went fishing at this place I caught a nice crappie off the boathouse. Even with a boat in the slip, we've caught most of our fish off the boathouse. I'm interested in the alfalfa tip.