Hole Bombing: Sometimes weed-bed bass refuse to come topside to hit surface lures, especially in deep water or clear water in bright sunlight. That’s when you should “bomb” the holes in the weeds. Use a heavy slip-sinker to get down where bass live. I’ve fished thick, matted weeds this way where vertical fishing was the only way to effectively catch bass. This is a very common tactic in Florida, Georgia, Texas, the Carolinas and other states where mats of hydrilia, water hyacinths and water lettuce abound.

The Lures – I like soft plastic worms and lizard imitations for deep weed-bed work. Snag Proofs “Hawg Dawg” is an excellent lure for heavy bass in thick cover because it comes rigged with two hooks, which help in hauling fish out of the slop.

Weed Strafing: Weeds that are slightly submerged in shallow water are great bass havens mainly because they’re important food sources. These types of weed beds should be “strafed” with lures – meaning baits should be run just over the tops of the weeds – to entice their large-mouthed inhabitants.

The Technique – An ideal weed bed would be on a big flat in 4 to 6 feet of water, with the weeds growing up to about 1 to 2 feet below the surface. Deep water should be reasonably close by, and much of the time the best action will be had during low-light conditions. Shallow, submerged weeds can be effectively strafed for bass with searching types of weedless lures.

The Lures – Buzzbaits and spinnerbaits work well, and soft plastic “Jerk baits” can be used with great success. The famed Slug-Go is outstanding, as are Culprit’s Jerk Worm and Mann’s The Shadow. Many skilled anglers favor large jerk baits in a 6-inch length because they give big weed bass a big target to see and attack.

In clear water, the aforementioned Johnson Silver Minnow and Hildebrandt’s revered Snagless Sally are both outstanding when fished over submerged weed beds. They have fish-catching flash, which draws fish from long distances. I favor skirts on these lures, normally tipping them with Uncle Josh’s pork rind.