Good drainage can be one of the biggest challenges when it comes to landscape installation. Fortunately, there are many creative and attractive ways to improve drainage in your yard.
1. Pebble Edging
Water often collects in the soil near transition zones, such as along the edges surrounding garden beds and mulched areas. A creative way to integrate both garden bed edging and drainage is with pebble edging. Your landscaper begins by digging a trench around the perimeter of the area to be edged. The trench is filled with attractive pebbles, which creates a highly permeable edging trough that increases drainage in the locale.
2. Dry Creek
Yards with slopes and hills will sometimes suffer from erosion where runoff tends to occur. Instead of fighting the erosion, have a dry creek bed installed. The turf is removed from the area of installation, and it's then lined with water-permeable landscaping fabric to prevent plant growth. The creek bed is lined with attractive rocks of various sizes. When it rains, water will trickle through the rocks instead of rushing down the slope and causing erosion.
3. Rain Garden
A low area in the yard can be turned into an attractive rain garden, which adds interest to the landscaping while also handling pooling water. It begins with installing a permeable base of sand, pebbles, and topsoil. Then, it is topped with gravel or small rocks. Finally, plants that can tolerate periods of extreme moisture followed by dry weather are planted in the garden. Water then filters into the rain garden instead of pooling around the yard.
4. Downspout Drains
Many drainage issues in the landscaping are a result of water running off the roof of your house. The flow from a downspout can flood the yard where it empties out. Instead of above-ground downspouts, install underground downspouts. Your landscaper can put in an underground drainage pipe beneath each downspout that will route water to a storm drain or an area that needs additional moisture.
5. Permeable Paving
The more paving you have in your landscaping, whether it's patios or paths, the less surface area is available to absorb the moisture, so standing water is more common. Swap out solid slabs of concrete for permeable paving options, such as paver stones with sand or gravel joints that allow drainage. There are also grid pavers that have openings for grass to grow, which also allow for maximum water permeability.
Contact a landscape installation company, such as Lee's Nursery and Landscaping, for more help in designing drainage for your yard.
When you move into a new home, relandscaping the garden is one way to have it reflect your personality. However, before buying any new plants, you need to know which ones suit your location climate the best.
When it is time to learn about landscaping and plants, but you don't know where to start, then you come to this website and start reading. Climate has a big impact on how well your new plants grow, so it is important to learn about soil testing, plant choice, and growth optimization, amongst other things.
The more you learn about plant choice and then their care, the better the odds of successful growing days.