A blanket bog is a very acidpeatbog, low in nutrients and extending widely over a flat terrain. They are found in cold wet climates. Research Blanket Bog
Bog is the name given to a piece of wet, soft, and spongy ground, where the soil is composed mainly of decaying and decayed vegetable matter. Such ground is valueless for agriculture until reclaimed, but often yields abundance of peat for fuel.
A bog seems usually to be formed as follows: A shallow pool induces the formation of aquatic plants, which gradually creep in from the borders to the deeper centre. Mud accumulates round their roots and stalks, and a semi-fluid mass is formed, well suited for the growth of moss, particularly Sphagnum, which now begins to luxuriate, continually absorbing water, and shooting out new plants above as the old decay beneath; these are consequently rotted, and compressed into a solid substance, gradually replacing the water by a mass of vegetable matter. A layer of clay, frequently found over gravel, assists the formation of bog by its power of retaining moisture. When the subsoil is very retentive, and the quantity of water becomes excessive, the superincumbent peat sometimes bursts forth and floats over adjacent lands.
Bogs are generally divided into two classes: red bogs, or peat-mosses, and black bogs, or mountain mosses. The former class are found in extensive plains frequently running through several counties, such as the Chatmoss in Lancashire, and the Bog of Alien in Ireland, the depth varying from 3.6 to 13 metres. Their texture is light and full of filaments, and is formed by the slow decay of mosses and plants of different kinds. The lower parts, being more entirely decayed, approach nearer to the nature of the humus than the upper portion, and, as being more carbonaceous, are more valuable for fuel. Black bog is formed by a more rapid decomposition of plants. It is heavier and more homogeneous in quality, but is usually found in limited and detached portions, and at high elevations where its reclamation is difficult.
In Ireland bogs frequently rest on a calcareous subsoil, which is of great value in reclaiming them. In the reclamation of bog land a permanent system of drainage must be established; the loose and spongy soil must be mixed with a sufficient quantity of mineral matter to give firmness to its texture and fertilize its superabundant humus; proper manures must be provided to facilitate the extraction of nutriment from the new soil, and a rotation of crops adopted suitable for bringing it into permanent condition. The materials best adapted for reclaiming peat are calcareousearths, limestonegravel, shell-marl, and shell-sand. Thoroughly reclaimed bogs are not liable to revert to their former condition. Trunks of trees are often found in bogs as are also bones of extinct animals. Research Bog
A bog spavin is a fluctuating swelling on the inner and front part of the hock of a horse, arising from a distension of the joint capsule with synovial fluid. Research Bog Spavin
Bog Asphodel (Narthecium ossifragum) is a British plant of the lily family with pretty star-like flowers. It grows in elevated moors and boggy grounds. Research Bog Asphodel
The buck-bean (Menyanthes trifoliate) or bog-bean or marsh-trefoil is a perennialherb of the family Gentianaceae. It has a thick, far-creeping rhizome which bears alternate, long-stalked trifoliate leaves with sheafing bases and an erect leafless stem topped by a raceme of numerous five-lobed white or pinkish coloured flowers. It is common in boggy soils and at the edges of ponds and lakes, and is found in England, Europe and North America. It is a bitter tasting plant and was once used as a tonic. Research Buck-bean
Droseraceae is a natural order of albuminous plants, mostly perennialbog plants, whose flowers are composed of five sepals, five petals, five, ten, fifteen or twenty stamens, and a single ovary. The leaves are usually covered with glands or glandular hairs. It contains six genera, including the sundew (Drosera), and Venus fly-trap (Dioncca). They have no known qualities except that they are slightly bitter. The leaves are generally circinnate in the bud, as in ferns. Research Droseraceae
The Manchester Treble-bar (Carsia soroiata) is a moth of the family Geometridae with a wing span of between 20 and 23 mm found mainly in scattered peat-bog localities in central Europe flying from June to August. Research Manchester Treble-Bar
The Probert Encyclopaedia was designed, edited and programed by
Matt and Leela Probert
Abbreviations
Research Blanket Bog
