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How to build a bog garden

Ok everyone i need to know every way i can on how to build a bog garden so please everyone that knows how to build one please tell me. I know there are many different ways so i want to know. Thanks.
 
off topic, but, ^ That just blew my mind! :0o:
 
Ok thanks so far.
 
Sorry to be condescending, but this is probably the most commonly asked question here on the forums, or at least it's in the top five - right up there with, "I got this plant at Home Depot, how do I take care of it?" "Are these lights bright enough?" and "Is my terrarium good?"
You'll be better served to research common questions rather than rely on others to inform you. The best answers are sure to be in older threads, and because they get asked so frequently, the most knowledgeable people are unlikely to respond your thread in particular after answering so many others. Most here are glad to help, but few want to do your job for you. Read up and get informed first, then post particular questions; when people can see that you've done your homework, and don't feel like they have to educate you on the basics, they'll be much more inclined to help you work out the more obscure details.
~Joe
 
Ok thanks. I know that i you can use a small kiddie pool then poke little holes in the pool. Put black plastic over that. Mix up a spahgnum peat moss perlite mix and put it in there. Am i correct? I have also heard you can do all that but dig a hole a little bigger than the pool and put it in the hole. So i'm i on the right track? Would anyone else do anythin else differently? What does anyone do around here about water? I know some people use RO units and rain barrels conected to their gutters but is there any other way to get water to water the bog except buying tons of gal. of disstilled water a week?

Thanks,

Ean.
 
Personally, having built long term ponds (a bog, minus the dirt), and "bog filters", I would not use a kiddie pool as a liner unless you want this to be temporary or plan on moving or redoing it in a year or so. My personal preference would be to use a layer of sand, a barrier (threaded plastic tarp will do), and then EPDM. That, or I'd use a prefab pond. Kold Ster-il, RO, rainwater, buy water, it's not going to fall into your lap (unless it's raining). Pick your poison on that end. Right now, I go through 1½ gallons/week with a terrarium, a Nepenthes, and an odd CP here and there, that includes misting, and misting my 30some bonsai (the bonsai get watered with tap water). A bog in the sun will gor through substantially more. I'd look into a water purification system, JMO.
 
  • #10
The cheapest option for a liner that's durable in the long term is probably a concrete mixing tub from Home Depot or Lowes. They're 3' x 2' x 8" and made from UV-resistant ABS - at $11 or $12, you can't really beat them for price. But, deeper containers are better if you can get them. A preformed plastic liner that fits in a half-whiskey-barrel planter is about $25.
One thing you might want to look into is Crissytal's under-media reservoir trick: http://terraforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=112574
~Joe
 
  • #11
Major kudos to crissytal on that one (didn't want to post in the thread). It's so elegantly simple and ingenious. Awesome invention that I will DEFINITELY use, I am sure, at some point in the future.
 
  • #12
Ok thanks I have gotten some really good info so far. But that doesn't mean for people to stop giving me good info. Thanks
 
  • #13
-the only extra info i would have to add is ... plan your bog... then before you start digging.. make it twice as big.

-like i said in my other post about my bog.. the reservoir idea (from crissytal) seems to be working great for me so far. Though we have had so much rain this month, i am using it to pump some of the water out to let the media flush a little. I think the big benefit will come into play in the winter, where i will be able to keep the media a bit dryer so that i can avoid any rot. In the long run, it will be interesting to see if it also keeps the media from getting to stagnant as well, but that will be years off.
 
  • #14
With the extra drainage, Nevermore, I think you'll see the peat get exhausted long before it gets stagnant. That is, if you have VFTs in it. If it's just Sarracenia and Drosera you probably won't notice at all.
~Joe
 
  • #15
Hey Joe, what do you mean by "exhausted"?

What's the difference of the vft and sarrs in regards to the media (besides that the vft like it a bit less water logged for a long time
 
  • #16
VFTs are sensitive to the age of the media they're in. Apparently the derive some critical nutrient from fresh peat, and after two or three years in artificial conditions, growth slows down unless the peat is replaced. (I'm guessing leaf litter, detritus and soil composition provides these nutrients in the wild.) Sarracenia are more tolerant in this regard. Although, I also understand that Sarracenia appreciate the occasional gentle root fertilization, so there seems to be some slight disparity there. Perhaps pitchers just catch so much more than clap-traps that Sarracenia can save up and be more tolerant of really nutrient-poor conditions... that would certainly make sense given their much greater distribution compared to VFTs.
~Joe
 
  • #17
makes sense. thanks for the heads up! I was planning on having to swap in new media every 3-4 years...
 
  • #18
I think you can get away with replacing the media just around the VFTs more frequently. That'll also give you a good opportunity to spread them out a little and make leaf cuttings. Some of the ICPS articles on VFTs explain in greater detail - I believe the one on VFTs from seed is where I first came across that info.
~Joe
 
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