Just about ready to plant bog

[EVMIII]

I've been working on my pond on and off for about 6 months now and I am finally adding the water that is going to stay as I type. I have a 6x6 bog area that is bout 18" deep that I plan to fill with pea gravel. I have enough flow through aquatic plant containers I can use as well as I can plant directly in the gravel. Water is plumbed in and spread out through a spreader bar at one end. Water gravity feeds back into the pond.

I've read a lot on here and like the idea of clay cat litter in the gravel, now I just need to decide what to plant. I don,t want anything that is going to grow to tall, maybe 3 feet or so. My wife definitely wants some cat tails so I'll be adding the dwarf variety. Looking for fullness and color. I don't mind some spreading, but I am definitely not a daily/weekly pruner. I'd love to get it full unsought that you can't see the gravel t all. Not much locally so I either need to take a road trip or purchase on line. I'd also be interested in recommendations for online purchase ( I'm a little leery of buying live things on line).

I just ordered a Encyclopedia of Water Gardens (Greg and Sue Speichert) for $9 delivered to help my process. Thanks in advance for the advice, this site has been extremely helpful through my build process.

Bud

 

[addy1]

Water blue forgetme not spreads nicely and covers well. Obedience plant does well, about 2 foot tall, purple flowers. Water willow is smaller, spreads, pretty. Bog bean, day lilies, grasses, rush,

I have a ton of bog plants, they grow like crazy, once or twice a summer I do a rip and purge, ow I leave the bog alone.

here is some info I have gathered.

Excellent Plants for the Bog may include:

Arrowhead Sagitaria (zone 4-6) Summer Bloomer. Bulbing root system stores(nitrogen, potassium & phosphorous)

Canna (zone 8-10) Summer Bloomer. A bog’s best friend. This plant is a biomass factory and has amazing beauty and structure. A heavy feeder on (nitrogen, potassium & phosphorous) from April through September.

Cattails (zone 3-5) Summer Bloomer. are vigorous growers and have deep roots.

Creeping Jenny (zone 5) Spring Bloomer.

Daylily - Spring through Summer Bloomer. Surprisingly, water is the best fertilizer for daylilies. They are an excellent nutrient feeder and grow well in the shallow areas of a bog garden. Daylily come in a variety of colors and blooming times for a long lasting color in your garden.

Eyed Grass (Yellow & Blue) (zones 5-7) Spring Bloomer.

Iris - (zones 4-6) Summer Bloomers.
Common water iris. (Louisiana Iris) Great variety in colors and styles. Plant habit is spreading and untidy appearance.
Japanese variegated water iris is a strong grower late spring through fall. Iris are good at removing both nitrogen and phosphorous.
Siberian Iris are preferred for their strong, clumping habit. Most growth spring and summer but use potassium and phosphorous in summer and fall for energy storage for next year’s bloom.

Kaffir Lily (zone 7) Fall Bloomer. A bulbing lily with watermelon red flowers. Grows in cooler temps of spring and fall. Small top growth controlled.

Lobelia Cardinalis (zones 5-7) Fall Bloomer. Beautiful late summer bloom. Nice color diversity. Heavy potassium user.

Marsh Marigold (zones 2-4) Spring Bloomer. A fast growing cool temperature plant. Begins growing very early in spring producing flowers by early March and continues through April, often re-blooms in the fall when weather cools. Medium root depth and actively feeds when most plants are dormant.

Pickerel Rush (zone 3-6) Summer Bloomer. Strong summer growth and bloom. A spreading habit with a shallow root system. A strong feeder on the total nutrient system. Blue Pickerel Rush is very hardy in our area, with a long bloom season.

Rain Lily (zone 6) Fall Bloomer. Late summer and fall grower. This bulb plant has a small controlled top growth but a dense vigorous root system with storage bulbs. Strong user of phosphorous and potassium.

Rush - Variegated Striped Rush (zone 5-6) Summer Bloomer. Evergreen and continues to grow almost year-round strongest growth in summer. Roots are shallow and need oxygen. Open habit allows for under story growth.but has a large vigorous root system feeding its bulbs. Very

Slough Sedge (zone 4) Very prolific, yet clumping. Grows to 5’ high in bogs. Deep rooting habit. Bio-mass. Strong user of potassium, sulfur, calcium and sodium. Somewhat salt resistant.

Society Garlic (zone 7) Summer Bloomer. Strong summer growth. Love phosphorous.

Star Grass (zone 7) Summer Bloomer. Very controlled, medium root depth, summer fall growth. Grasses are strong feeders of potassium and sulfur.

Thalia (zone 6) Summer Bloomer. Very deep rooted. Open stem structure allows for very diverse under story growth. Summer blooming. Large storage roots.

 

[EVMIII]

Thanks Addy for the information, this is exactly what I was looking for. I live in zone 9, very seldom drops below freezing and doesn't stay there long. Can colder zone plants (4-8) handle the South Mississippi heat? I need plants that thrive in hot and humid, we get plenty of that. Thanks again for the response. Bud

 

[addy1]

My theory is try them if they make it they get to stay, if they die, not to be replaced. My pond and bog are full sun, last year we were over 100 quite a few times. The only thing that might hurt the plant is a lack of dormancy.