Ask About Bog Filter

[pimen]

hi all im newbie here, this is my 2nd post,
I have a problem, recently I build a mini bog filter, I planting dwarf papyrus and umbrella palm , they get sunshine pretty well, I thought they pretty hardy and easily adaptable, I dont know if my planting methode is wrong or what
i just wash the root and trim the root, completely remove the dirt from the roots cos I dont want the dirt make my water cloudy, I plant these plant with only gravel, and the water is up to the crown
then after just 2 days I notice some yellowing and dying leafs, what happen guys ? basically I just plant them bare roots with gravel, Am I wrong ? or they just need time to regrow ? what should I do ? trim the leafs or cutting the stems ?
thanks and best regards all

 

[Meyer Jordan]

You may be over=trimming the roots and not leaving enough to support the existing foliage.

 

[pimen]

You may be over=trimming the roots and not leaving enough to support the existing foliage.

thanks for the reply sir, then what should I do ? change the whole plant ? or just wait and cut the stems ? can this plant grow again ? I bought like 7 pots of them, then 5 of them dying, but there are some that survive

 

[Meyer Jordan]

Always trim foliage first and then always leave more root ball than foliage. The roots is where the plants store energy needed to support growth. When the roots are trimmed too much in proportion to the foliage the plant may die.
No need to wash the soil away before planting in a 'bog'. It will not migrate and cloud or foul the water and this insures less transplant shock to the plants.

 

[Usman]

why do u cut roots ? theres no need , plants r sensitive if u disturb them they will react this way and wil take time to settle . its natural if u move any plant from one place to another it starts over again if u have disturbed the root position . trim leaves only or stems , no need to uproot
these plants will grow even if u place it in running water without any soil or gravel but they will spread roots to b stable and get nutrition , its there instinct they will feel bad and react if u change position . try not to move them alot they will b happy , the dirt on there root will not make ur water murky actualy they r filtering it , only the excess will make it cloudy

 

[Gemma]

......the dirt on there root will not make ur water murky actualy they r filtering it , only the excess will make it cloudy

I agree! I learned this with my water Hyacinth!

 

[pimen]

Thanks all, glad to join this forum, reading and learning, so much trial and error in this project, this is a whole new world to me, even its just a small bog, soon i will update the picts!

 

[Gemma]

"Trial and error" is the way we learn!
Looking forward to see more pics!

 

[Angel]

"Trial and error" is the way we learn!

Amen. took me about 8 years of trial and error to get clear water to see the bottom of a 4' pond.

 

[pimen]

so here I go again,
I definitely start over again with a whole new plant and not trim the roots just some foliages, so we will see
so I have another question:
plant growth either (the multiplying) or getting bigger (higher and wider) are the signs of what are they really doing with our water pond (filtering it a.k.a absorb the nutrient and use it for growing)
so in the future, lets say for 1 /2 years if my bog area already heavily populated with them, it means no room for them to grow then they are can't filtering the water properly?

if my opinion is correct, then we should trim the plant right ? I see some experienced pond keeper in the internet, he said when a plant in pea gravel in a bog established its really hard to pull it out, then im both lazy and afraid to take out the established plant from gravel cos it can disturb them , so what if I just cut off the stems and not take out the plant and not trim the roots? cos basically it will triggering new growth too right ? can it still filtering the water sufficiently ?

 

[addy1]

he said when a plant in pea gravel in a bog established its really hard to pull it out,

They are not hard to pull out. I just grab and yank. The yellow flag iris is the hardest to removed, that I dig down a bit to remove some.

 

[Lisak1]

I think I understand your question. You are thinking that if the plant stops growing, it stops filtering and by trimming the plant you will encourage more growth. That is partially correct. However, remember that the overcrowding you should be concerned about isn't what you see - it's in the roots. Plants that outgrow their space - whether in a pot or in a bog - will generally begin to die back. Encouraging top growth also encourages root growth, so you're just making the problem worse.

As @addy1 said, pulling plants from a bog isn't difficult - way easier in most cases than digging them out of the ground. And when they are well established - as they will be very quickly - they won't be bothered by being thinned out. In fact, perennials appreciate being divided and thinned and will respond by re-growing and filling out, which is your goal.

There are exceptions to the "they're easy to pull out" advice - plants that grow tall tend to also develop big root systems. If you don't want the work of digging out a big clump of, say, irises then plant things that are easy to yank out - there are lots of things you can grow in your bog that are shallow rooting plants and don't get really tall.

 

[Meyer Jordan]

Should be treated much the same way as any terrestrial garden. Periodic weeding and thinning is required.

 

[pimen]

I think I understand your question. You are thinking that if the plant stops growing, it stops filtering and by trimming the plant you will encourage more growth. That is partially correct. However, remember that the overcrowding you should be concerned about isn't what you see - it's in the roots. Plants that outgrow their space - whether in a pot or in a bog - will generally begin to die back. Encouraging top growth also encourages root growth, so you're just making the problem worse.

As @addy1 said, pulling plants from a bog isn't difficult - way easier in most cases than digging them out of the ground. And when they are well established - as they will be very quickly - they won't be bothered by being thinned out. In fact, perennials appreciate being divided and thinned and will respond by re-growing and filling out, which is your goal.

There are exceptions to the "they're easy to pull out" advice - plants that grow tall tend to also develop big root systems. If you don't want the work of digging out a big clump of, say, irises then plant things that are easy to yank out - there are lots of things you can grow in your bog that are shallow rooting plants and don't get really tall.

this is exactly what I mean,
so here's the thing...
actually I am a little bit scared to disturb the established plant whether its grow in gravel or soil
if we go to the very first discussion in this thread..,
I take the conclusion that plant will react badly like dying and yellowing if we disturb and trim the roots, and its showed in my first post in this thread, @Meyer Jordan & @Usman response said so..

ur advice is very very logical,
I try to change my mind to dig out the plant when the plant overcrowded (in the bottom) soon,
then Im confuse to do the right roots trimming , im very traumatic to do any change in the roots

if we trim the roots that already overcrowded in bog, then instead we should trim the foliage too right ?
so the roots that we trim must balance with the foliage too ? oh my god that is confusing i think its alittle bit difficult to take the trimming calculation of foliage/roots precisely to avoid dying & yellowing again????????!

 

[addy1]

Rather than trimming roots or foliage, why not just pull excess plants, make more room for the left undisturbed plants? I never trim foliage or roots on the bog plants, when they get crowded I pull and toss the excess.