Garden drainage help

Apodemus

I'd leave well alone until the new turf has had time to knit together and produce a better thatch (which may be one reason why your neighbours untended lawn looks better).

And if you are going to do anything dramatic by hammering spikes deep into it, be sure you know where all the services run first!

bettz

I've been looking into adding drainage as i can connect it to the drainpipe near the backgate providing it goes down deep enough.

Just 3 rows of perforated pipe some gravel and some material to wrap the pipe in forgot the name.

Adding gypsum has been mentioned had anyone tried that

Farway

bettz wrote: »

I've been looking into adding drainage as i can connect it to the drainpipe near the backgate providing it goes down deep enough.

Just 3 rows of perforated pipe some gravel and some material to wrap the pipe in forgot the name.

watch out for rules & regs, you cannot just just tap into any old pipe willy nilly

drainage pipes are designated services and you could find yourself with a whopping bill from the sewage / water or whover company

bettz

Well yesterday i dug down on the corner of the garden where the water seems to sit and i got about a shovels & Half's depth down and hit solid clay.I filled the hole with water and left if 24 hours the waters still there so it looks like I've no choice but to add drainage.

Niv

Have you considered putting in some bamboo? I did this in my garden and it worked well. I used black bamboo as it is slow growing but does spread and get high over time. I am pretty sure you can get dwarf / slow growing bamboo or similar water loving plants.

bellaboo86

I have a clay garden too and my lawn is also looking a bit sorry for itself. I think one of the main problems might be the dog. I have a furry friend too and the lawns on either side of me seem in better condition.
one of these gardens is slightly lower than mine as well.

Justagardener

Look up liquid aeration it clumps particles of soil together opening up channels allowing better drainage. Worked a treat on a lawn I had with standing water. I used a professional range but I think you can by a domestic version from amazon.

More info http://lawncaresimplified.typepad.com/lawn_care_simplified_safe/2013/07/lawns-growing-in-clay.html

Wookey

That small patio you have looks like it's just funneling rainwater down onto the grass, with heavy clay in below the grass the rain has nowhere to go to and without adequate drainage in place its unlikely to improve. Some form of small evergreen hedging along the fence will help improve the soil around it and take in some water as its root system spreads, downside will be constant trimming.

Another avenue if you fancy spending a few quid would be to go with proper soakaway drainage in below the grass piped over to one corner which is dug down and filled with stones, on top of this plant some good growing thirsty plants. Digging the garden up regularly at the end of Autumn and mixing compost in will allow the clay to get broken down by frost and improve drainage no end.

One other option would be raised beds of flowers/veg with small pathways round them, just having grass means it constantly needs cutting which means constant walking over and with such a small area and the runoff from that patio and no adequate drainage the problem will persist.

bettz

Cheers i think I'm going to add drainage pipes.

I've thought about buying 2 soakaway creates and buying them but I'm not sure how successful they'd be as i can imagine half the gardens full of clay about half a metre down under the top soil.

I'm going to dig out from the fence a bit more and maybe add more slate and maybe add some buxus plants in pots as the dog will just dig them all up

The gardens looking alot better now we've had a few days with no rain but it's still a little squelchy near the fence and a few canes to stop the dog digging in her favourite spots :mad:

I_have_spoken

I'd do a soak-away crate with a sump-pump set so that it automatically pumps water into the drain with the sink/washing-machine. It's sailing close the wind legally, but...