Bogress on my Pond!

[Stephen T.]

You read right, I'm making bogress on my pond. I have a short stream chunk leaving my lower pond, so it looks like it's going somewhere and I've been trying to come up with a good way to disguise the endpoint. Well, I don't really like the view to the west, a neighbors yard and house. So, I figure to kill 2 birds with one stone, so to speak.

I'm putting in a bog that is totally separate from the stream and ponds, with only about a 1" wide, low wall between. The very end of the stream will be slightly below the overflow level of the pond, so heavy rain or over sprinkling of the grass and plants will go into the bog. I'll also have to water it, probably with hidden soaker hoses. The bog is lined with plastic, punctured in places at the bottom. I plan on bulrushes and cattails along the back and a variety of shorter wetland plants in the front. This should hide the stream ending and also block the view.

I've got it half dug and refilled with layers of soil, rotten sawdust and compost, about 16" deep. I should be able to finish the digging and filling tomorrow. No doubt there will be height adjustments, lots of plastic trimming and hiding, etc., but the hard part is coming along nicely. I'll have to put in a few stepping stones to service the pump and filter. This is a secondary pump that along with the little stream, acts as a skimmer.

 

[sissy]

I rarely ever see my neighbors they are either at work or church or hold up inside .Only time I see them is when they are out mowing or driving by in there cars .So you are using dirt for your bog instead of gravel .I see end of stream and then the green outline ,is that the bog or am I just confused

 

[Meyer Jordan]

Since you punctured the liner to allow drainage, what you now have is a form of what is typically called a 'Rain Garden' and it will need periodic watering as you indicated.

 

[Stephen T.]

The green outline is generally where the bog will be. This is not a filter, just a wetland that is not part of the pond/stream. My bog/filter is at the top, about 60 or 70' away and 4' above the end of the stream. I'm using a mix of about 40% volcanic soil, 30% compost and 30% well aged sawdust, nearly rotten. This should be very similar to the edges of Agency Lake, where I'm getting my bulrushes and cattails. I did use some pea gravel in the bottom of this bog.

On the right side, you can see our sunken greenhouse. The back side is where the sauna is. We're hoping to make the area around the pond private enough to step out of the sauna and/or sun bathe in privacy. Once there's a 6' board fence and a bunch of tall plants, only drones will be able to see in.

This should make it a bit clearer!

 

[peter hillman]

Wow big project!

 

[addy1]

That will look great when you are done

 

[Stephen T.]

The payoff is worth every bit of sweat! The birds love it and frogs have moved in this year, making quite a nice chorus in the evenings. The only disappointment, the goldfish will not stay in the upper pond (6x9 and 30" deep). They migrate down the stream and over the waterfall (and won't go back!).

It's exciting to know I can start planting a large portion now. The bog filter is filling in nicely with a variety of native wetland plants. From there on down, to the lower pond, the land sculpting and rock work is done, but it's pretty empty of plants. The new "rain garden" (we don't get much rain here!), wetland area should be ready for planting in a few days.

 

[sissy]

Not sure I could ever tackle a job like that .That explains it all a natural privacy fence .Do they grow year round and how high will they grow .Never really heard of bulrush's but we have cattails here and they only get about 6 feet tall .You said fence being 6 feet tall will that keep the plants from getting enough sunshine to grow .

 

[Stephen T.]

Not sure I could ever tackle a job like that .That explains it all a natural privacy fence .Do they grow year round and how high will they grow .Never really heard of bulrush's but we have cattails here and they only get about 6 feet tall .You said fence being 6 feet tall will that keep the plants from getting enough sunshine to grow .

The bulrushes (Scirpus acutus) will get 8-10 feet tall and will stay up until crushed by winter snows, it grows fast and feeds heavily. There are huge stands around this end of Agency lake, which is only 1000' west of us. It is submerged part of the year and as the lake goes down (irrigation demands) they are high and dry in August through early spring.

The fence is about 15' west of the new area, so shading won't be a problem. Presently, the whole area gets full sun all day. I have a couple ponderosa pine trees that will partly shade things in a few years. Right now they are only 12-15' but grow 18" a year.

 

[sissy]

We all get those weird neighbors that we wish would go away .I know I have one that needs to go and may go after all the fines .Thing is she goes out shopping every day .I cannot afford boscovs store but she can .Animal control told me she is pregnant with number 5 in 1200 sq. ft house and that 1200 sq . ft. includes the 2 car garage

 

[Meyer Jordan]

Animal control told me she is pregnant with number 5

Now that IS weird!

 

[Stephen T.]

Yes, we all have those type neighbors, unless we live way out in the boonies. We worked for many years maintaining 6 huge ponds, the fish and 7 retreats for some rich folks. Living 10 miles from the nearest neighbor really spoiled us! Here, we have, behind us, barking for hours dogs, a 5 year old that is allowed to push the power lawn mower with no supervision and across from them, a family in a messy small home with 4 or 5 kids. They only know one word, a high pitched screaming, or at least that's the way it seems.

Hidden within my rock work around the pond are 2 high quality, large speakers that look like rocks. I tend to listen to a lot of music out there! This morning I was working to Bach, as soon as I type this, it will be Pink Floyd, then some good blues. I've also recorded my rapids and waterfall and sometimes play that quite loud. It "Drowns Out" the other sounds nicely!

I've almost got the new boggy wetland filled back in, using up an awful lot of our compost pile. It's a good thing my wife already got what she needed for the raised beds and greenhouse!

 

[addy1]

Good planning! Our neighbors are far enough away, couple hundred feet, and quiet they don't bother us, we don't bother them. Very few know we even have a pond.

 

[sissy]

I hate even mowing my yard on that side because garbage smell is terrible ,she is far enough away but I still have to maintain my property .Meyer the reason animal control told me was because one of her cats killed one of my fish and she down loaded the video from my security system for proof .Animal control also told me looks like there are at least 2 litters of kittens over there also .I guess a lot more than the 15 I have counted

 

[Stephen T.]

I got it filled in, other than the top couple inches, which will cover up the "liner". Once that's done, I'll have to get it really soaked I suspect it will take a long time, probably, I'll set up a fine sprinkler and let it run overnight, then dig down and see how wet it has gotten. I can hardly wait to plant it!