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Proud owner, with questions..

Finally finished the 2nd bog today! And I've got a few questions about what can handle this bog, mulched and covered, through our zone 6a winter..

Is it too late in the season to put tiny sarr seedlings in there? Or should I keep them indoors under lights all winter?

What are the dews that can survive in this bog? I know rotundifolia and intermedia because they're native to the area, but I forget what else.
When is the best time to cover the bog with mulch and a tarp?

Sarrs basking in the sun. They've been cooped up in the outdoor GH for the past couple months.
They're screaming for some sunshine! Which this bog get's plenty of..
Spoiling them rotten now with this 3ft. deep bog & underground drainage.
The overall dimensions are 8' Long x 4' Wide x 3' Deep


IMG_2815.jpg


IMG_2819.jpg
 
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very nice set up mass.
 
hey thanks..
 
That's going to look great next summer. I think you need some filiformis in there though.
 
There's one small D. filiformis. But I really only have filiformis tracyii, which I'm told won't survive the winter. So it's staying indoors..
 
You shouldn't have to mulch it. I'm in zone 5 and have never mulched any of my 5 bogs. Everything makes it through just fine. I would keep the Sarracenia seedlings inside for the winter. I keep all my seedling Sarrs inside and growing steady for 2 years without dormancy. You could always put them in the bog in the spring if you want though.
 
cant' wait to see how that puppy looks in about a year.
 
  • #10
What are the dews that can survive in this bog? I know rotundifolia and intermedia because they're native to the area, but I forget what else.
D. filiformis filiformis (northern version), D. anglica (northern versions), probably D. linearis as it grows in your area (can be tough to source though), probably D. x beleziana & D. x hybrida. In theory - D. arcturi - but it's probably the world's slowest-growing dew (ask Johnny).

When is the best time to cover the bog with mulch and a tarp?
Managing a bog through winter was an art that I didn't master. If you 'smother' it, you may pull back the tarp in the spring and find nothing but mush. Depending on your local critter populations, rodents of various species may enjoy their newfound home and either nibble or obliterate your plants.

You shouldn't have to mulch it. I'm in zone 5 and have never mulched any of my 5 bogs. Everything makes it through just fine.
I'm in zone 6 and depending on the winter, I always lost 'some' Sarrs (typically the rare ones without a backup) and most VFTs. This was 10-15 years ago and the winters were much colder then than we've had in the past 3 or 4 years. Snowcover can help a lot as it acts as an insulator.
 
  • #11
Hey Mass, as far as Drosera go, I am thinking Anglica, Linearis, maybe Capillaris?

Maybe some Pinguicula Vulgaris, might not be hardy enough, though...

Maybe I am wrong, but if you put a ton of Live LFS in there next year, it might act as a kind of mulcher for all your plants....

Looking nice, the Catesbei is my favorite!!!

Will
 
  • #12
D. filiformis filiformis (northern version), D. anglica (northern versions), probably D. linearis as it grows in your area (can be tough to source though), probably D. x beleziana & D. x hybrida. In theory - D. arcturi - but it's probably the world's slowest-growing dew (ask Johnny).

Man, those D.arcturi don't move ! They're over a year old now and are still itsy bitsy. Look at em !
<a href="http://s1109.photobucket.com/albums/h434/Nepenthes138/Drosera/?action=view&current=018.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1109.photobucket.com/albums/h434/Nepenthes138/Drosera/018.jpg" border="0" alt="Drosera arcturi"></a>

I'm in zone 6 and depending on the winter, I always lost 'some' Sarrs (typically the rare ones without a backup) and most VFTs. This was 10-15 years ago and the winters were much colder then than we've had in the past 3 or 4 years. Snowcover can help a lot as it acts as an insulator.

I'm going on my 12th year or so of growing Sarracenia outside and have never lost one during the winter. I just leave them uncovered in the bogs along with many other cp's and bog plants. I've lost a vft or 2 intermittently but, very rarely. I guess everyone's bog conditions are just a little different
 
  • #13
hmmm..
So should I even bother covering it with a tarp? Sounds like just tossing some dead leaves on there before it gets covered with snow would do the trick.


If anyone has the scoop on the drosera species mentioned so far, please shoot me a PM. I'm lacking pretty much all of those and I love me some dews in the bog!!
Confident I have something of interest to offer in return.
 
  • #14
If you feel that you must cover it and don't want to tarp it, use pine needles, not leaves.
 
  • #15
We have plenty of pines in the yard, so I can make that hap'n cap'n.
 
  • #17
Bogs looking good. If it were me, I would cover with a thin layer of pine needles and only cover with a tarp when you get cold freezing wind conditions and uncover when that is over. Freezing winds will harm if not kill the sarrs. If you do mulch, check the plants regularly to make sure no mold/fungus is growing under there.

As for the sarr seedlings, I would keep them inside this winter and then plant them in the bog in spring. Even in my zone 8 conditions, I am putting this year's potted sarr seedlings into the greenhouse I am using as a cold frame for winter.

As for dews, I think filiformis northern would survive in there, rotundifolia, intermedia, capillaris, and probably others I can't think of right now but others have already mentioned.

I have lost flytraps before in winter due to rot in the old bog that did not drain well, so now I mound them slightly.
 
  • #18
ditto to what has already been said. i've got some little sarr seedlings coming to foco that i'm thinking about keeping in the greenhouse for this winter and then taking them back to michigan when i visit next summer. this is the first winter that my bogs won't be mulched at all so i'm expecting to lose both adrian slacks and leah wilkerson lol.
 
  • #19
I live in a zone 5b and have wanted to put an outdoor bog in for a while now. OUr average snowfall is around 5 to 8 feet so i would almost assume there would be plenty of insulation but idk if they would survive until then.. any help on this. sry mass didnt mean to take over your thread. thats an awesome looking bog. can wait to see it next year.
 
  • #20
I second the pine needles motion. Worked great for me last winter. As for tentative plants;
-S. 'Snowflake"
-S. flava
-S. purpurea (obviously)
-S. rubra
-S. jonesii
-S. oreophila
-S. oreophila x leucophylla
-S. x catesbaei
-S. x moorei

In a few years we should have a leucophylla x purpurea cross that's going to be absurdly chunky, vigorous, colorful, and cold hardy.
 
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