Is your landscape flooding? We have solutions.
June 3, 2015 | By webadmin
Did the heavy spring rains turning your landscape into a muddy mess? Soggy, over-saturated soil can damage landscape plants, tree roots and lawns. Poor drainage around your home can also result in costly damage to foundations. Creating successful drainage is part of any good landscape design. But sometimes existing landscapes need some renovation in order to address specific drainage issues. If you have any drainage problems in your landscape, this spring’s rains surely revealed them.
There are a few different techniques we use to address drainage problems in the landscape. French drains, re-grading areas of the property, improving soil and creating unique hardscape features are a few of them. Which one is right for your home and landscape? That will depend on your unique situation.
French Drains
Because water always flows downhill and through the path of least resistance, French drains may need to be installed to redirect water flow. A French drain consists of a trench up to 12-inches deep filled with gravel and a pipe to divert water away from a specific area of the landscape or your home. As water builds up in the trench, it enters the drainage pipe through small holes on the bottom of the pipe. Installing a French drain beneath a roof line or a gutter can help direct water away from your home’s foundation.
Re-grading
The slope of your property, or certain areas of your landscape, will influence where water travels or builds up. For example, if your lawn or driveway slopes towards your house, you could end up with water collecting around your foundation. Or, you could have low depressions in your lawn area that cause excessive puddling. Your lawn may die out in these areas. It’s best to redirect the water away from your home, not towards it. The grade of your lawn or landscape beds can be altered or low areas can be filled to level the grade. We may use re-grading in combination with drains to solve your drainage issues.
Healthy Soil
Heavy clay soils hold a lot of water and don’t always drain well. They also become very compacted. During heavy rains your lawn or landscape plants can fall victim to root rot diseases or lack of oxygen when soils don’t drain properly. Aerating and improving the texture your soil can improve drainage. Core aeration can be performed on lawn areas. Expanded shale and other soil amendments can be added to landscape beds to improve drainage. Learn more about healthy soil at our blog post here.
Creative Hardscaping
Physically moving water around your landscape can also be done in a way that adds to the beauty of your landscape. Swales or dry creek beds filled with river rock help move water away from foundations and low areas as well as slow the water down during heavy storms. They’re also quite beautiful. Using creative hardscape features like this, we can turn a problem spot in the landscape into an attractive and low-maintenance focal point.
If you think you have drainage issues, now is the time to address them while professionals can see how the heavy rains have impacted your property.
