Nevermore's Bog v. 2.0

[Nevermore]

Well I abandoned my first bog built several years ago. The plants seemed just languish and not thrive like my plants i have in pots. I built it to close to the fence, so come early afternoon the western sun would be blocked. It was also to low on the one side to the surrounding ground level, so when we would get heavy rains, dirt would get it from the surrounding bed. The fig tree on that same side is also sending runner roots through the whole bog as well... so it's at least happy! I have only lost a few small plants over winter from rodents digging them up. I will just be utilizing it for a perennial bog bed... which should be fun.

The new one just uses the standard retaining wall blocks from the big box store with a liner. It sinks into the ground a bit to total about 12-15 inches in total deep. Besides the usual covering with a pvc net structure and heaps of straw, to help insulate it a bit for winter, I plan on spraying in some of that expanding foam behind the blocks. There are some decent sized pockets in there now. I ran out of pine straw to also use as a bedding cover.. so i will cover the rest of the bog and pots later with it. Keeps the splash back down.

When i was filling it with peat/water/pine needles/pearlite... my 4 year old was sitting on the edge and throwing in pine needles as i mixed it. He proceeds to fall in and get half covering in wet peat mess. Was the end of a good day for him. At least he will be the only kid in the local area that can say he has fallen into a bog.

The best thing so far is that it is some much nicer to have the plants raised up a bit from the ground! Saves on the back!

I transferred all my sleeping plants over a few weeks back and they are all sending up new flowers and pitchers. The venus fly traps in the bog are from my seeded collection last winter.

And the last white pot is of my recently collected "fancy" vft collection and a leah wilkerson... which will go to the garage in the winter.

And of course I have the standard bog building "ahh crud... I should have made it larger" reaction.

<a href="http://smg.photobucket.com/user/Nevermore44/media/Bog2.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v218/Nevermore44/Bog2.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo Bog2.jpg"/></a>

<a href="http://smg.photobucket.com/user/Nevermore44/media/Bog.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v218/Nevermore44/Bog.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo Bog.jpg"/></a>

<a href="http://smg.photobucket.com/user/Nevermore44/media/VFT3.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v218/Nevermore44/VFT3.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo VFT3.jpg"/></a>

<a href="http://smg.photobucket.com/user/Nevermore44/media/VFT2.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v218/Nevermore44/VFT2.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo VFT2.jpg"/></a>

<a href="http://smg.photobucket.com/user/Nevermore44/media/VFT1.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v218/Nevermore44/VFT1.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo VFT1.jpg"/></a>

 

[dionae]

Thats a really good looking bog.

 

[monkey_Cup]

thats awesome

 

[Oregoncp]

Very Nice!

 

[CP4ever]

hey yeah i love how u made it a center attraction it danny well should be CPs for life!

 

[Nevermore]

thanks all. The dw said the same thing CP4ever.... I plan on cutting more perennial beds to ring it a bit with more stone path around it.

 

[Nevermore]

Updated bog in the fall... it did much better with the additional direct light. The VFTs did well and even the VFT seed that i scattered about in the spring had a good amount of germination. So there are a bunch of dime sized plants hiding down in the pine needles. We didn't have that dry of a summer, so I only had to add rain water a few times.

So for the winter, I used the expanding foam insulation to fill in all the gaps behind the blocks and liner. Then I (over) built the PVC missile silo lid. I later added pvc legs that are driven into the ground and jointed to the lid. It will all be covered with old sheets after the plants die back a bit and i give them a haircut... might add some straw too...

 

[mylesG]

wow it looks beautiful! and it took so little time to do so

 

[dionae]

I agree with Myles. Thats an awesome bog.

 

[Nevermore]

Just in time...

 

[RSS]

Things like this just make me spend more money

Love it.

 

[Nevermore]

Stinking mice and voles!!!!! Well since we had a nice warm day, all the snow cover we have had forever disappeared. I decided to check the bog plants conditions after such long below freezing temps. I pull the covers back at about half of my entire collection is mowed down. Tons of pitchers just laying there. There is a nest of shredded burlap and dog hair from the neighbors dog all wadded up in the middle. Several plants have holes dug down around there crowns with bits of crown about. In prior years I have had mice do this but never this bad and the didn't really mess with the plants. They just used the covered bog for winter cover....... So I placed a bunch of traps out and threw a cover back over the bog...... And I will be in the market for some plants in the spring

 

[cpbobby]

aw man! I was getting ready to say that bog just looked perfect with the sarracenia in there!

 

[richjam1986]

Beautiful looking mini-bog

 

[Nevermore]

Updated bog shot. Many of the mice damaged plants have been slowly recovering. It's nice to see the fall pitchers starting up now. The one plant that just hasn't slowed at all and is many times it's original sizes from the spring is the 'hummers hammerhead'.. i will have to divide it soon to slow it down.

 

[fdfederation]

 

[Nevermore]

Bogs 2 and 3

Well I added a 2nd and 3rd bog over the past few weekends. They are 6ft, 5ft, and just short of 4 ft bogs. I cleared out my potted plants... so no more garage plants this winter!

 

[EyeofHeru]

I love the bog designs. Does the sprinkler water affect the plants?

 

[Dexenthes]

Loving it. . . must be so refreshing to walk outside and see a handful of awesome bogs like those in your yard.

 

[Nevermore]

Thanks.

In regards to using a sprinkler.... I had purchase on of the types that your can really control the direction and coverage... So I can avoide the bogs while watering the perennial beds. I don't water the grass... Just let it go dormant I the summer.

I do walk the yard each day before leaving for work.... I enjoy it... Though most other non cp folk just get confused as to what a bog is in the first place... Ie " aren't bogs just swamps? Why do you have swamps in your yard"