Particle baits really come into their own in the warmer months, and at the right time and in the right place will often produce better results than fishing over boilies. Particles, which come in a variety of shapes, sizes and textures, are extremely versatile. You can fish over a large spodded area or set marginal traps with just a couple of handfuls. Another advantage of particles is that the small items of food will hold fish over your baited area for much longer than a bed of boilies. It makes sense when you think about it, for they are far more time-consuming for the fish to hoover up!
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HEMP
Hemp is one of the most popular particle baits, forming the bulk of most anglers’ spod mixes. Being so small it will hold fish in your swim for a long time as they try to hoover up every last morsel. Hemp can be purchased as a natural seed which has to be soaked and boiled at home, or ready-prepared in jars or tins. PVA-friendly hemp is also available. This is lethal when fished in conjunction with a couple of grains of fake corn on the hair.
How to prepare hemp for fishing: Soak for 12 hours and boil until split.
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PARTIBLEND
Partiblend is a mixture of different particles including millet, dari, buckwheat, hemp, linseed, groats and tares. This combination of small, oily, spicy and sweet attractors provides the fish with different-sized baits and releases a milky cloud of attraction. Unlike other particles, Partiblend doesn’t need pre-soaking – just cover well with water, turn on the gas, and as soon as the water boils it is ready to go. What could be simpler than that?
How to prepare partiblend for fishing: Simply boil for one minute.
SWEETCORN
Sweetcorn is an all-time classic carp bait, and there isn’t a carp that swims that won’t eat it as though it’s going out of fashion! As well as being ultra-effective, sweetcorn is also extremely cheap, and is readily available from any supermarket – so what’s not to like? The only problem with using corn on the hook is that smaller ‘nuisance’ species love it too, and this can be a real problem at times. To combat this, try using a couple of plastic grains on the hair.
How to prepare sweetcorn for carp fishing: No prep required. Use straight from the bag or tin.
MAIZE
Used heavily on the Continent, maize is often overlooked by UK anglers. Yet it’s a fantastic bait and can be used both as free offerings and as a hookbait. Not only is it visually attractive to fish, but it’s also packed with attractive natural sugars and contains high levels of energy-boosting carbohydrates. Because it’s so cheap, maize is an excellent choice if you’re planning to embark on a prebaiting campaign and you don’t want to spend a small fortune on boilies.
How to prepare maize for carp fishing: Soak for 24 hours, boil for 30 minutes.
TIGER NUTS
If you asked a group of top big-carp anglers to name their ‘go-to’ bait – aside from boilies – it’s a fair bet tiger nuts would come top of the list. Apart from the fact that carp absolutely adore them, one of the biggest advantages of ‘growlers’ is that most other species won’t touch them. It’s best to use them sparingly, though: one or two tigers on the hair over a small handful of whole and chopped freebies is more than enough to tempt a bite.
How to prepare tiger nuts for carp fishing: Soak for 24 hours, boil for 30 minutes.
MAPLE PEAS
Maple peas are brown mature peas that have been allowed to dry out naturally in the field, rather than be harvested while still young. If you’re looking for a bait that carp really enjoy that no-one else will be using, these tick all the boxes. They were hugely popular in the 1980s but have fallen out of vogue in more recent times, for no apparent reason. If your venue sees a lot of bright baits such as corn, maple peas could be just the ticket to fool the more cautious specimens.
How to prepare maple peas for carp fishing: Soak for 12 hours, simmer for 30 minutes.
If you start to incorporate particles into your fishing after the fish have spawned you can really reap the rewards. The fish are hungry, and feeding lots of particle can really get them in the mood and make them easy to catch. Give these cheap and easy to use baits a go on your next session.