Date: Tue, 13 Jun 2000 08:05:52 -0400 (EDT) From: Nicholas Plummer <nplummer@duke.edu> To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com Message-Id: <aabcdefg1795$foo@default> Subject: Re: Bog container water table
Miguel de Salas wrote:
>Any comments on what water table depths other people have used successfully
>in the past?
Hi Miguel,
To some exent, it depends on how much sun and rain you get, but keep in
mind that a sealed mini-bog is a bit different than a pot sitting in a
dish of water. The bog is filled with soil, so it will hold a limited
volume of water -- much less than when you have a dish that is
significantly larger than the pot diameter. Consequently, you may find
that the water-table in your bog fluctuates rapidly. That being the
case, I would drill the holes higher than you might think the water table
should be. I have four mini-bogs (complete with vertical PVC pipe for
checking water level as you are planning) made from 14 inch diameter
planters with sealed bottoms. The drainage holes are drilled about 1
inch below the soil surface. On very hot summer days, I can completely
flood the bog, and by the next afternoon there is no standing water in
the PVC pipe. The main purpose of the drainage holes is to prevent
flooding during storms.
My minibogs have been in operation for several years, and the
following plants are growing well in them: Sarracenia leucophylla, S.
flava, S. minor, S. purpurea venosa, S. purpurea purpurea f.
heterophylla, Drosera filiformis, Dionaea muscipula, Lobelia cardinalis,
Platanthera ciliaris, and Rhexia sp. New additions this year are Pogonia
ophioglossoides, Spiranthes vernalis, and Platanthera blephariglottis. I
have not bothered trying to adjust the level of the soil to create drier
microclimates, although I do keep the bog with the majority of orchids
slightly drier than the ones with more Sarracenias.
cheers,
Nick
(Durham, North Carolina, USA)
--------------------------------
Nicholas Plummer
nplummer@duke.edu
http://www.duke.edu/~nplummer/main.html
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