If you are developing a garden and want to grow anything in it, you would be told that your plants need a well-drained spot. That is because there are tiny pore spaces in the soil that carry oxygen, necessary for the roots to be healthy. If the soil is not well-drained, such pore spaces get filled with water. When this happens, it presents many difficulties for plant growth: diseases, fungus growth, and rot.
The good news is that some plants thrive in constantly moist, even wet, soil. There are a few landscaping tactics that allow you to improve poorly drained soil and grow a variety of trees, shrubs, and perennials. For better results, it’s wise to hire a professional landscaping company.
1. Note the Moisture Level of the Soil
First, become familiar with the soggy soil. Note which areas of your lawn are frustratingly wet and how long they may last. Observe soil moisture through seasons, how quickly the water dissipates after a big rain, and how often the area has standing water.
A simple test used in the landscape trade to determine drainage of a particular soil is to dig a hole 18 inches deep and about 12 inches in diameter in the wet area. Dig a hole 18 inches deep and about 12 inches in diameter in the wet area. Fill the hole with water. The level of the water should drop steadily and be completely drained within 24 hours. If water is still standing after a day, repeat the test several weeks later to ascertain whether you have seasonal drainage problems (spring runoff, for instance) or a year-round wet soil challenge.
2. Add Compost
If you have a small, not-so-bad drainage area, lighten the soil by working in plenty of organic matter. Compost comes chock-full of pore spaces for oxygen. Mix it with the slow-draining soil to help add valuable air pockets. This is a multi-year process. Mix in 3-4 inches of compost annually to improve drainage over time.
3. Grow Water-Loving Plants
If the wet spot is too large to alter by adding compost or isn’t likely to alter (a riverbank, for example), you have a few options. The easiest course of action is to choose plants that enjoy getting their feet wet–marsh marigold, cardinal flower, and turtlehead, for example–and, if necessary, create raised paths or boardwalks through the garden so that you can enjoy the garden from a drier vantage point.
4. Create a Rain Garden
This leads us to a rain garden, which is a beautiful solution for places that are occasional soggy spots. These hardworking landscape features collect and filter the runoff water, slowly infiltrating it into the landscape. The plants in a rain garden should be ones that enjoy wet soil but will also put up with short, dry spells.
5. Create a Bog Garden or Pond
A more involved solution to a poorly drained area is to develop a pool, bog, or water garden. This will probably require some professional help: land will have to be carefully modeled to hold enough water in the area. One added advantage of maintaining a little pond on your property is that wildlife naturally gravitates toward wet areas for drinking and bathing. Many birds, including grackles, mockingbirds, catbirds, cardinals, and nuthatches, will seek out your wet garden.
6. Drain Tile Installation
A more labor-intensive method for changing a site with poor drainage is to excavate the soil and then install underground drainage tile. Attention to detail is the key to success while installing drain tile. The slope, depth of tile, and where the water is going to the outlet must be taken into careful consideration. A rain garden or bog garden may be required adjacent to the drain tile outlet.
This is often a project best left to a professional landscaping company, but if you want to do it yourself, here are the tools, materials, and instructions to follow.
What You Need:
- Shovel
- Gravel
- Rake
- Corrugated drainage tile
- Topsoil
- Stones or groundcover
Step 1: Dig a Trench
Dig a trench from the moist area to the desired drainage area. Normally, an 18-inch-deep trench will suffice for most landscape drainage situations. The trench should have enough slope to carry the water to the drainage area. In this regard, the trench should be an inch or two wider than the pipe you intend to install.
Step 2: Spread Gravel
Fill several inches of gravel at the bottom of the trench and rake it smooth. Lay drain tile on the top of the gravel.
Step 3: Cover and Protect Pipe
Cover the complete drainage pipe with a number of inches of gravel to prevent soil particles from plugging the openings in the tile. Then, fill the trench to the surface level using topsoil.
Step 4: Camouflage Outlet
Mulch the drainage field at the pipe’s outlet with stones or with a moisture-loving ground cover, but do not obstruct the pipe. If you are concerned that critters might get inside the pipe, lay down wire mesh over the opening. If you put a cover over the end, make sure to occasionally clear the debris off of the mesh to avoid blockages.
The Bottom Line
If your lawn has poor drainage, there are several ways to improve the situation. Aeration improves the soil’s structure, which will, in turn, improve drainage. Organic matter or soil conditioners can break compacted soils. After that, excess water may be diverted away from your lawn by the use of drainage channels or subsurface drains. These systems prevent waterlogging.
Grass should be regularly mowed, and thatch should be removed after the accumulation of debris is removed thereafter. Always remember the ultimate solution to improving poor drainage depends on the correction of the cause. Of course, if you need professional help, you can contact experts in landscaping, such as The Gardenian, one of the best landscape contractors in Abu Dhabi. They offer a whole range of gardening and landscaping services that include design, horticulture, and maintenance.
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