Bogging in New Jersey

[bobchapman]

How nice! I also had rain fill my newly dug pond...... but before I had the liner in..... twice! At least your rain was better timed!
I love how your pond is coming along. Nice job.

Thanks for the encouragement; always appreciated!

 

[bobchapman]

Great! Looking forward to more pictures.

We use rain water to change our pond water, add water, etc. Love a good rain, the pond gets a great water change.
Even though we are on a well I like using rain water. Saves our well pump from running a lot.

I've just assumed that there are no problems with the goldfish being in rain water: is that a good assumption? That's how they live in the wild, I suppose.

 

[addy1]

I've just assumed that there are no problems with the goldfish being in rain water: is that a good assumption? That's how they live in the wild, I suppose.

I have not had a issue in the last 6 years, they are healthy. Some people don't like using roof water others use it. I use it, we are rural.

 

[bobchapman]

OK, here are some pix. First is the pond with cap rocks in place, and largely filled with water:

I stopped putting rain water into the pond because at the moment I have no way to deal with overflow if it were to rain more! It would eventually just overflow the rock cap stones. In the next couple of days I will deal with that issue.

I have some of the cap stones mortared in place; more of that to happen soon. There are lots of tasks ready to be done, but only me to do them!

 

[bobchapman]

Today I dug the stream deeper, made sure that it was level side-to-side, and got the underlayment and liner in place. Had to join the liner in three places with the infamous seam tape: wow, is that stuff sticky. There's a real art to applying it, and I don't think I have mastered that art! This pic is looking uphill from the pond to the bog.

Here's half the stream bed as it leads away from the bog (the pink thing) towards the pond.

Saturday we chose the rocks that will line the stream: rounded river rocks, flats. They are 1 to 1.5 inches thick, and from 2"x3" up to 4"x6", approximately. I think that they will lie in the stream bed pretty well.

Today I also got some of the huge 3" valves in place in the pump pit. Pit space sure disappears quickly when you're putting these big buggers into it!

 

[addy1]

That is going to be so great when you are done.
I can't tell by the picture is the stream edge higher than the surrounding land?
I to raise a edge or two in my build.

That tape is so sticky! I had my fingers glued together more than once.

 

[bobchapman]

If I were you I would just make it a liner stream. Deals with freeze thaw and heaving better.

Addy, did you mean just a liner with no rocks at all? It doesn't look too non-natural with just the black liner?

Yes, the stream edges are a bit higher than the surrounding grade level. I'm hoping to keep ground water out of the stream.

 

[addy1]

No I have rocks here and there. The steep drops have rock water falls. There are a few places that are just liner, the rocks kept washing down. (steep slope)

This is one of the switch backs

creeping jenny growing in the stream

 

[bobchapman]

Thanks for the pix, Addy, that's a big help.
Wow, you have done a lovely job with your stream and landscaping. Were all the rocks on your property, or did you have to find them elsewhere? I've gotten real friendly with people doing construction work, who are just as happy to be rid of rocks and boulders! Heavy work, but the price is right.

 

[addy1]

The stream was built out of around 3 pallets of rocks all carried up the hill by lil ole me. Most of it is pa field rock.

I had to buy them, we had nothing but shale in this yard and around here, I would find some white quartz now and then. Any construction sites, they dig up shale.
I saved all the shale, not knowing it would melt away once out in the weather, it became dirt over winter.

I need to groom some of the plants this winter, with all this rain they have taken over. I was walking up on the hill, checking on things, somewhere in that mess is poison ivy, ended up with streaks breaking out on my legs. Or there is some plant my body does not like, contact dermatitis. It needs to die back so I can work on the stuff that needs to be groomed back.

 

[bobchapman]

It takes awhile for plants to get established, at least here, but once they take hold they really boom forth. We put out 3 to 5 30-gallon garbage cans of pruning stuff (either my pruning or mother nature's) each week for the town's special yard waste truck. (Suburban area, no other way to dispose of plant materials.) Our biggest day was 8 cans, and that's only because we ran out of cans; had another two cans worth, but no cans.

I try to save the last hour of the day for weeding and pruning; otherwise, it just gets way ahead of me.

I built a short wall out of a reddish-colored rock a few years ago. It has gradually decomposed into a "swale" rather than a wall. I shovel up some of it to use in our walking paths.

 

[bobchapman]

Today was a plumbing day: squeezing the priming-pot-leaf-catchers into the pit. Got the pumps and pots all connected; now need to get the pump outputs connected. Went pretty smoothly, though it takes a lot of thinking through where each line is to go. Am also trying to leave an un-committed space in the center of the pit in case I find that I need to add filtration of some form. Maybe some pix tomorrow.
Also ordered a bunch of sacks of concrete for delivery. I see in my future a couple of undocumented workers and a concrete mixer ...

 

[addy1]

It takes awhile for plants to get established, at least here, but once they take hold they really boom forth. We put out 3 to 5 30-gallon garbage cans of pruning stuff (either my pruning or mother nature's) each week for the town's special yard waste truck. (Suburban area, no other way to dispose of plant materials.) Our biggest day was 8 cans, and that's only because we ran out of cans; had another two cans worth, but no cans.

I try to save the last hour of the day for weeding and pruning; otherwise, it just gets way ahead of me.

I built a short wall out of a reddish-colored rock a few years ago. It has gradually decomposed into a "swale" rather than a wall. I shovel up some of it to use in our walking paths.

I have it "easy" just take all our trimmings into our woods, push them down our hill and they rot. I use the tractor. Getting a great pile of mulch out of it, if I dare get in among the poison ivy to get it.

When I trim the grasses, my pile is around 12 feet tall, it just disappears.

 

[bobchapman]

I have a 30' x 30' space behind the garage that I use to mulch leaves. Been doing it for 30 years or so. Now when I plant, I use some of that stuff to amend the soil. It's at least 12" deep with rotted leaves, and many worms.

I don't put large downed branches in there because it takes so long for them to rot, and that's the bulk of what I give the town to take away. I do add softer pruning stuff to the mulch pile.

This year, Virginia Creeper has taken over with a vengeance: I need to get the tiller in there and grind them up into mulch. The whole space is Creeper, whereas in previous years there has just been a bit of it in one corner.

 

[addy1]

I am fighting vines, they are on steroids this year, growing everywhere!

I shove everything down the slope. I just checked my 12 foot high pile it is around 2 feet right now. Poison ivy everywhere around it.