12 June, 2026 | Carp | Angler Blogs | Tips | Articles

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How To Create My Tried and Tested Groundbait Mix

In the articles I have written, most of them have included mention of a ground-bait mix. I use one of two mixes every-time I go fishing and don’t think that any angling situation isn’t enhanced by the inclusion of ground-bait.

By Andy Bradnock

Choice of mix is governed by the time of year and water temperature. The base is the same for both consisting of equal measures of two ground-baits, Swim Stim Match Margin mix and Big Fish Mega Margin Mix.

This combination gives different attractors and a good mix of particle sizes which theoretically distribute and move around at different rates while fish are feeding in the swim. There are ‘method’ versions of these two ground-baits that make a denser ball.

In my mind they don’t cloud up and move as well as these two margin mixes. The denser mix potentially hold the balls together when putting them at greater ranges but, I have never found them necessary.

My winter mix is much simpler with very little variation. I want to provide maximum attraction but with no physical food. I want that attraction on the deck but also, create enough flavour and cloud through the water column to draw any susceptible moving fish into the baited zone.

I don’t include any food items just liquid attractors. As the water is colder, dispersal is much slower as the water particles aren’t moving as much and the colder water is denser. Oils and oily/fishy attractors don’t disperse as well in the cold as they become thicker.

High sugar attractors seem to work better. The tiger-nut and sweetcorn extract fulfils these requirements, I mix in some corn steep liquor a brewing bi-product full of complex sugars to bulk this out.

I always include fish-gutz which is a feeding enhancer, the idea being if I manage to attract any fish into the area, if I can keep them feeding for longer, then I have a greater chance of them making a mistake.

You don’t need to add much just a few mils which I add to the other liquids so it is evenly distributed through the mix.

My warm water mix is more complex and is trying to achieve a different effect and response. In the summer, I am trying to keep fish in front of me, feeding for as long as possible. I want plenty of attraction and as many varied sized food particles as possible.

I tend to use a particle or seed, my current favourite is the Frenzied Milky Pulses, this is made up of various sized particles, this should prevent preoccupation on a single seed and means the fish are constantly encountering different sized food items.

his makes the singling out of the abnormally acting hook-bait more difficult for the fish. This year dynamite are bringing out a new Buckwheat and corn mix which I will be using as a new lake I am planning to fish doesn’t allow pulses.

This background of particle is then added to with chopped and whole boilies and a mix of 6 and 8mm pellets.

I use the Swim Stim Betaine Green, Amino original and the Marine Halibut pellets. I tend to mix these in equal quantities, adjusting the amounts depending on how heavily I am feeding.

These ‘dry’ ingredients are then mixed through with a combination of liquid attractors, with higher water temperatures I include some oils; garlic oil, hemp oil and recently the Krill oil dynamite do. The idea being that they disperse through the water column and travel reasonable distances.

Fish gutz feeding trigger is mixed in with 3 main bulk liquids; Krill liquid, shrimp extract and crab extract, sometimes I will also include some CSL. Don’t think of these from a human perspective where sweet and savoury wouldn’t be mixed, in the simplistic brain of a carp this isn’t how it works.

What I am trying to do is load the water body with as many varied potential receptor activating particles as possible, hopefully triggering a response from as many carp as possible.

The final benefit to feeding in this way is that multiple species are attracted to the baited zone, the noise created by these feeding fish chewing on various baits travels a long way underwater which may in its own right not be attractive but, I don’t think it will be repellent.

As we are generally fishing for the largest fish in the lake, when they arrive they will muscle out the smaller competition.

Once all this is thoroughly mixed together the ground-bait mix is added until the required consistency is achieved to allow you to get it out into the lake by whatever method you deem appropriate.

Spombing allows you to use a wetter mix but be careful you aren’t bringing fish off the bottom with too much mid water clouding. This can then drift on the undercurrents and draw fish away from where you are fishing.

Spombing ground-bait is a filthy business and you will coat everything within a mile radius of your swim with globules of the stuff. My preferred method of delivery is to make the balls up then fling them lake-ward via a method blaster.

This makes more noise but you can get a lot of bait out really quickly. I am a terrible long range caster but can easily chuck a ground-bait ball 100yds with this method.