Post by jfowler on Jun 19, 2007 16:06:51 GMT
My front yard bog garden is 5 years old. It is 10 feet by 3 feet and is 18 inches deep. It is lined with a heavy rubber lining and is filled with 50% Canadian peat + %0% sand. I live in Greenville, SC, which has a fairly moderate climate (90's in the summer and maybe 20 degrees as the low in the winter). I have several species of Sarracenia, Drosera, Pinguicula, and a few Dionea. Also have Calopogon tuberosus in profusion as well as some Spiranthes sp. and Platanthera ciliaris.
Here is my problem: This year, for the first time, I had to water the bog garden. Initially, I used some bottled water, but that was too expensive, so I had to resort to using tap water. Our water is known to be very low in disolved minerals, and low in chlorine. I watered only in the early morning before going to work. Anyway, the Sphagnum, which was already very dry (actually crisp) by the time I watered it, began to die off underneath. I actually noticed a very foul odor at one time coming from the area of the Sphagnum. Now, beginning at the center of the largest Sphagnum colony, everything is turning brown and is dead. The range of this catastrophy is expanding, so this morning I removed all of the dead plants and Sphagnum hoping to stop whatever is causing the problem.
Question: Is the problem caused by a bacteria or fungus? Will my removal of the Sphagnum and dead plants solve the problem? Thanks in advance for any light that you can shed on this situation.
Here is my problem: This year, for the first time, I had to water the bog garden. Initially, I used some bottled water, but that was too expensive, so I had to resort to using tap water. Our water is known to be very low in disolved minerals, and low in chlorine. I watered only in the early morning before going to work. Anyway, the Sphagnum, which was already very dry (actually crisp) by the time I watered it, began to die off underneath. I actually noticed a very foul odor at one time coming from the area of the Sphagnum. Now, beginning at the center of the largest Sphagnum colony, everything is turning brown and is dead. The range of this catastrophy is expanding, so this morning I removed all of the dead plants and Sphagnum hoping to stop whatever is causing the problem.
Question: Is the problem caused by a bacteria or fungus? Will my removal of the Sphagnum and dead plants solve the problem? Thanks in advance for any light that you can shed on this situation.
