Many of the best tournament fishermen in the country will be the first to admit that man-made brush piles have played a major role in many of their winning patterns.  Brush piles, both visible and sunken, are major bass attractors when placed in the proper location.  I have built several hundred brush piles during my fishing career and have placed them in every conceivable location on the lake bottoms of East Tennessee reservoirs.

I have found that hardwoods and cedar trees make the best brush piles.  I have experimented with every type tree from willow to pine.  I have actually had fish begin using the brush within 24 hours after placing it in the water.  However, brush piles usually become more productive after algae begins to grow on the branches and leaves.  The algae attracts bait fish and bream and the bass will follow their prey.  the brush provides the bass with cover and they use the brush as an ambush point.

There are several ways to build brush piles, but I have found the following to be the easiest and most productive.  The materials needed are cinder blocks, plastic wire ties (zip ties 36-48 inches are best), and your choice of trees or limbs.  Take the smaller cedars or limbs and jam the holes of the cinder blocks with the limbs until the limbs are wedged tight.  If you will remember to force the limbs in opposite directions through the same holes, the limbs will wedge better thus holding the brush pile together.  This serves as the core of the "bass condo".  Next, take a larger tree and lay it across the top of the cinder block.   Run your zip tie through the top hole in the block and around the trunk of the tree or large limbs.  Pull the zip tie tightly so the tree will be snug against the top of the block.  this type of brush pile can be set on the bank when the water is down, or dropped over the side of the boat at the desired location and depth.  To make the pile larger simply put more brush on the top of the block before securing it with the zip tie.

Once you have built these bass condos, the decision of where to put them is the last, but most important step in this process.  I have found that many beginners tend to over-brush an area.  Placing brush piles in an open flat will many times bring excellent results, simply because it is the only immediate cover in the area.  Remember, Don't brush banks or drops that are already productive, I can tell you from years of experience, that all your brush piles will not hold fish.  However, by using the trial and error approach, you will eventually see that building these "bass condos" can pay big dividends when it comes to locating and catching numbers of bass.

Doug Plemons
Nichols Marine Pro Staff Member