Cornish Posted August 17, 2012 Report Share Posted August 17, 2012 Constructing my first "half barrel" bog garden. I have seen other excellent posts on here regarding the construction, including using polystyrene chips or similar at the base around an upturned bucket with holes in, to help reduce weight and also reduce the amount of compost required to fill it! Can someone tell me the depth of compost required above all the filler components? Many thanks Phil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billynomates666 Posted August 17, 2012 Report Share Posted August 17, 2012 Hi Phil Sarracenia particularly make a lot of deep roots when growing healthily, although they don't mind the roots getting pot bound. if you can give them 12-18" or more of depth that will be ideal. Be a little wary of your infill materials in the reservoir, plastic pots buckets etc are OK but Styrofoam and polystyrene I have heard (sorry I dont know for sure) leach chemicals into the soil over time which could cause problems. also beware of rocks etc as they can also contain minerals that will leach into your soil and cause grief to the plants. Remember the soil and water will be acidic so judge what you put in accordingly as anything that is not inert will react with it. Cheers Steve 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrbadexample Posted August 21, 2012 Report Share Posted August 21, 2012 (edited) Phil, Careful with the polystyrene. I did a bit of reading up on it and found that it does leach into the soil. I went against most advice and used it anyway, albeit in a tightly sealed heavy gauge plastic bag. Time will tell as to whether I get away with it or not. As a result I've probably got nearer 8" of substrate above all the gubbins inside - less in places (barrel was only 15" deep to start with). Again, time will tell if this works, but everything seems relatively ok thus far. I'll post a picture of how it looks now when I get chance over the next couple of days. HTH, MBE. Edit: photos now added to the construction thread. Edited August 22, 2012 by mrbadexample Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cornish Posted August 25, 2012 Author Report Share Posted August 25, 2012 Thanks for the replies Steve and MBE Ended up with 8 to 10 inches in the end. Cheers Phil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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