Bucky's Bogs

[bucky78]

I finally got the time to take some pics of my bogs, it took a little while!! OK, I have 5 bogs. There are over 300 clones of Sarracenia, 70 or so clones of VFTs, and some Pings and Drosera mixed in. The 4 bogs on the outside are 4' x 12' x 10" deep and 16" deep in a couple of areas. The bog in the middle is 3' x 12' x 10" and about 12" deep in one area. They still aren't quite finished. My wife wants to put something like stones around them to make them "Pretty", but it doesn't bother me. If anyone has an idea on what to put around them that isn't too expensive, I would love some ideas. Here are the pics!

All of the Bogs



Front View of Bogs



Left 2 Bogs



Middle Bog... As you can see, there is still room in this bog if anyone would like to make a donation!!! Or a trade would be good!



Right 2 Bogs



This part I call the "Wilkerson Bog". This is a bunch of plants that I got from Brooks that came from the Wilkerson Bog!!

[pinglover]

Hi Bucky, your bogs are beautiful. Thanks for sharing the photos. I know how long it takes to upload images to hosting sites.

What are you filling your bogs with and how frequently do you change your soil?

There are two thoughts that come to mind for the edge of your bogs. The first being plants. You could mask that edge with a mixed border of perennials of assorted heights. Something easily grown from seed that is indigenous to your area possibly?

The second thought would be to use any locally available rocks or stones and simply stack them along the sides of your bogs capping off the black liner with flat stones for a more finished "wife" approved look. The only concern I would have with this would be that rocks and bricks generally absorb heat during the day and might radiate that stored heat back into your bogs. I don't know if the wood planks you used would be thick enough to stop the transference of heat.

[bucky78]

I filled the bogs with peat, perlite and sand. I mixed the bottom 1/2 or so with peat and perlite/sand, about 50/50. And the top half with peat and sand. I did this because when it rains, the perlite tends to float to the top and I hate that. So the sand holds it down pretty good. Another reason I did it that way is for the flytraps. I have grown them pretty much in peat and sand for the most part and they seem to like it. I know that the roots will eventually go down into the peat and perlite and that will be fine. I just built these bogs this spring so I can't really answer how often I will change the soil. I have heard everything from every other year to never change the soil so I am unsure of what to do. Thanks for the kind words. Wes

[pinglover]

Adding Perlite to the bottom sounds like a great idea. I hate it when it floats up myself. I've begun to eliminate sand from my mixes these days because the heat seemed to really be building up in it. I've reverted to straight Canadian peat. We'll see how it works out for me.

[ICPS-bob]

I like your design. The problem with the finished "wife" approved look is that the rocks and stones provide a great hiding place for snails and slugs and also make weeding more difficult. I would, however, cover the black plastic with a lath or something to prevent it from deteriorating from the sun.

Although the planting of Dionaea and Pings with Sarracenia in your "Wilkerson Bog" looks very nice, you will find that the smaller plants will become over-topped and shaded out by the Sarracenia within a year or so. I had the same problem until I put the smaller plants in a bog without Sarracenia. My bogs are now 5 years old and my only other problem is keeping weeds from invading -- but weeds can be controlled with a bit of pulling every couple of weeks.

[bucky78]

Hi Bob, If you look real hard you can see a few of your plants in there as well. I really like your H1 hybrid!! Yes weeds invade and every chance I get I go out there and pull them. How often have you changed your soil mix?

[pinglover]

Oh, never thought of that. I don't have a problem with snails and slugs. Well, sometimes slugs but I take care of them with beer. Slugs like beer. They drown themselves in beer.

Weeds are a big problem for me. I'm constantly out there pulling them up by hand. Rhizomatous grasses are the worst. I've often wondered if a product such as Poast would be safe to use in and around Sarracenia.