Bog building, also called upflow filter, eco filter, wetland filter

[FountainMan]

I just came across this. My pond basically has bog edging but water not pumped into the bog but flows past the bog area. The pea gravel is below the water level so the peat moss can absorb and become saturated to favor the plants growing in it. Now if the water line is below the pea gravel do the roots do down to the water? Besides the carnivorous plants we basically have weeds growing (will be delt with in fall). So the bog Area isn't verry big. about 4"wide, 4" deep and runs the perimeter of the stream and lagoon. In the lagoon the water is piped into the center where I built a pit for the fountain pump. Around that the lagoon has a pea gravel floor about 8" deep. I built a river rock wall 4" in from the actuall edge of the pond. Here I have the peat moss and plants.

Am I doing anything wrong? The plants are growing and it seems to do a good job at filtering. But after reading this I feal I neglected some important things.

 

[addy1]

imho what you have is fine. If you are saying it is filtering the water then what you have done is working. There are many ways to add plants, gravel etc to help keep your water nice and clean.

The plants will send their roots down until they reach water. If your pea gravel is higher than the water the roots will go down until they find water.

 

[FountainMan]

So another question. I also read not to add a pre filter. This has been in the plans. The lagoon looks nice when the pebbles are clean but the mud accumulates heavily on the top of the pebbles. The water is clear but the mud is dence. I get rid of it and then it's back again. I've been toying with the idea of adding a pressurized bio filter into the feed.

Is it possible to run the backflush line into the gravel bed so all the organic matter goes into the bog where it can be used by the plants, but clean water is returned to surface?

 

[addy1]

The best thing you can do is try it. Mine gets straight pond water, from all I have read the plants like unfiltered nutrients from the pond. Put it in and see what happens. There, most likely, is enough nutrients in the water even after the filter to feed the plants.

 

[FountainMan]

Awesome. I'm sure it will be a while before I make purchase. But when I do I'll keep everyone posted.

 

[humbirdlover]

Addy, got some questions? Here'a few pics of the only space I have for a bog If my pond surface is 7' x 8' that's 56 sq, feet and it's recommended to need about 30% for a bog, a 3' x 6' space would be enough? Also in the pics there is a over flow pipe to the left next to the watercan, hard to see. But I can't dig there. would you recommend me putting the bog to the right of that pipe? I do have a space with rocks in pic 3 that could possibly work, but that would put the input from the bog opposite where the water comes in from my hand pump water feature. I can't move that..Help! LOL I really don't have much space to work with but would really like to put a bog in.

 

[humbirdlover]

third pic got lost, LOL Here's the rock space..

 

[addy1]

My previous bogs were small compared to the pond. This one just ended up huge, mainly for the plants, but also I did not want any other type of filtration.
The size you are saying will work. I would just pick the area that will work best for you and put it in.

 

[CountryEscape]

HBL, can't wait to see you start digging your bog! I don't think where the water flows from the bog into the pond will make any difference to where the hand pump water feature is. It's all circulating the water, and the flow from the bog will be very light, unless you make your bog elevated somewhat.
Is that Creeping Jenny that is a bright lime green/yellow color? Mine must be a different variety, but I love the color contrast of that and your day lilies!

 

[addy1]

my creeping jenny is yellow, have some green too. It is growing wonderfully.

 

[CountryEscape]

I'm wondering, since so many have the creeping jenny. Do plants come up through it, or does it pretty much smother anything that is under it? I have it in and around lots of my plants in between the deck and pond, stuff JW gave me last year, and this year it just spread solid! So, do I worry about the plants coming back next year, or will they get started maybe before the jenny, and then the jenny just fills in the extra space? I love how weeds don't stand a chance around it, but worry some of my perennials may not come back either. Perennials I'm talking about are a tall iris (which should emerge before the jenny), dwarf coneflower, sedum, balloon flower (just planted that this summer late, on clearance, so no biggie if it doesn't come back in time). Had an Oxalis (purple 4-leaf clover plant) come back from last year, I'm thinking because of mild winter, and the jenny sheltering it! I will pull it away from the plants and put some type of ring (cut off a flower pot) around the plants I want saved, if I have to worry about the creeping jenny smothering them before they get started back up. Then can remove the rings once the perennials are going well. Your thoughts, Addy/HBL/JW and anyone else that has creeping jenny?

 

[humbirdlover]

Thanks addy. I guess it's possible to move that over flow pipe, just as long as there's enough fall, so will measure and find some liner. In a post from Waterbug, he was talking about having an air space where one liner over laps another? The liner from the bog will have to overlap the existing pond liner. What do you think I should put under the over lap? It had something to do with water seeping up between? I'll never find the thread again, do you know what he meant?
Yes CE, that creeping jenny takes over there, LOL It gets a lot of sun so stays that bright yellow. If you pick up the top layer, it's green underneath. I like it because it's one ground cover you can rip up, and get rid of it you want.

 

[humbirdlover]

I'm wondering, since so many have the creeping jenny. Do plants come up through it, or does it pretty much smother anything that is under it? I have it in and around lots of my plants in between the deck and pond, stuff JW gave me last year, and this year it just spread solid! So, do I worry about the plants coming back next year, or will they get started maybe before the jenny, and then the jenny just fills in the extra space? I love how weeds don't stand a chance around it, but worry some of my perennials may not come back either. Perennials I'm talking about are a tall iris (which should emerge before the jenny), dwarf coneflower, sedum, balloon flower (just planted that this summer late, on clearance, so no biggie if it doesn't come back in time). Had an Oxalis (purple 4-leaf clover plant) come back from last year, I'm thinking because of mild winter, and the jenny sheltering it! I will pull it away from the plants and put some type of ring (cut off a flower pot) around the plants I want saved, if I have to worry about the creeping jenny smothering them before they get started back up. Then can remove the rings once the perennials are going well. Your thoughts, Addy/HBL/JW and anyone else that has creeping jenny?

I've never had a problem with it smothering anything. It's easy to rip out if you don't want it to grow up in the plants. I give it a good hair cut in the spring to get rid of all the brown dead parts. I kinda let that patch get out of control, but you can control it easy enough.

 

[Fishylove]

i believe the Oxalis is a perennial CE, at least mine has come back. And I've not had a problem with creeping jenny smothering other plants, I'll even plant annuals where there are holes in the creeping jenny and they do just fine. Now, I have it in my front flower beds that get mostly shade ( early morning sun) that could be why it doesn't grow so fast. But the Hosta's and Purple Palace come up from under it just fine.

 

[Fishylove]

few pictures of the area i would like to put the bog, but not sure if it would be feasible...

this is a sandstone retaining wall, no mortar just dry fit very sturdy, the wall is filled with soil, then the stair/walkway butted up to it and down around it...

the fourth picture here you can see the temperary pond i have the fish in while I replace the liner and dig some more

the last two is an idea i had to make the retaining wall a Bog and have it stream over the walkway and into the pond, then have some type of bridge over the stream...