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raised beds on ground prone to flooding - advice sought

REMF33REMF33 Posts: 731
in Problem solving
I have a lot of water irises at the bottom of my back garden which I want to get rid of (they have plans to take over the world) and I would like to put one or two raised beds in the same location. (Which *might* enable me to put a small greenhouse where my current raised beds are, husband permitting.) However my garden is prone to flooding (probably a culverted stream in the playing field below getting blocked). Is this a feasible plan, and is there anything special I should do? Two possible issues occur to me: over boggy soil and rotting bed walls if I go for wood. It tends to happen in the winter. The water may stay for a week if it keeps raining. This is what it looked like in Feb.  (It's not always this bad, but was particularly bad this year with sustained heavy rainfall.)
All the detritus in front of the shed are the remains of the water irises. (Which of course grew back. There's no killing them. Thankfully, the dwarf cherry in the pot half submerged also survived and produced a numper crop for the first time.) Current raised beds are invisible in these photos - two 1.2 (?) m square ones between the two compost bins.







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Posts

  • nick615nick615 Posts: 1,487
    There is only one material to use, and that is concrete 'boards' or paving slabs.  I'm hoping to attach a pic of mine (6ft x 1ft) that have been in situ for 12 years and counting.  The irises will be no problem if you cadge some thick cardboard packing cases from a white goods supplier and lay them on the ground, flattened of course, before constructing your beds.  They'll normally be only too glad for someone to take them away.  If there's no natural fall to your plot that will permit you to run a drainage ditch away, it may be an idea to dig a shallow sink/sump that will fill first so that, with a simple electric pump, when you notice it filling, you can pump the water away into your house drainage system. 
  • nick615nick615 Posts: 1,487
    Sorry!  Attached the wrong pic.  Better one now.
  • REMF33REMF33 Posts: 731
    Thanks very much. We have considered a pump but not sure where we could drain the water to (easily). This is the bottom of a 100 ft garden.
    Did you mean leave the irises in and cover? I was contemplating trying to dig them out.
    It's weird, neither of our nieghbours' gardens flood quite this badly.
  • edhelkaedhelka Posts: 2,351
    What about digging a pond in the lowest area? Maybe it would be able to hold the excess water. I don't think you can build anything over this.
  • nick615nick615 Posts: 1,487
    REMF33 if you can obtain plenty of cardboard (shouldn't be difficult) you might lay two layers on the irises before filling the bed with earth etc.  I did the same thing abut 12 years ago when making a couple of beds out of old tractor tyres, and nothing has ever come through from underneath.  Good luck.
  • REMF33REMF33 Posts: 731
    edhelka said:
    What about digging a pond in the lowest area? Maybe it would be able to hold the excess water. I don't think you can build anything over this.
    It only floods for about a week once, tops twice, a year, and this is at it's worse. It doesn't get this bad every year. We did have a lot of rain earlier this year. The area where the potted cherry tree is, is deeper than on the left. There is a submerged path on the left which was probably an inch under (as opposed to ten inches where the cherry is.
    If I did build a raised bed, what affect might it have? Most of my growing has been in the summer, but I suppose I did vaguely think maybe some winter crops.
    It's surprising what survives. I have fruit bushes down either side, which admittedly aren't inches deep in water but must get pretty soggy. They fruit well.
  • REMF33REMF33 Posts: 731
    Will look into a pump option too.
  • nick615nick615 Posts: 1,487
    The flood might be the only VISUAL sign of your problem but the fact that you can sustain irises means its pretty soggy below the surface all year round?  If it wasn't, they wouldn't be there, so you need some form of action? It may be to construct a fairly deep bed so that water is available to capiliarise regularly up to where your plants are, but they're immune to getting waterlogged.
  • PyraPyra Posts: 152
    REMF33 said:
    edhelka said:
    What about digging a pond in the lowest area? Maybe it would be able to hold the excess water. I don't think you can build anything over this.
    It only floods for about a week once, tops twice, a year, and this is at it's worse. It doesn't get this bad every year. We did have a lot of rain earlier this year. 

    Unfortunately, with the climate becoming warmer and wetter, this will become more and more common, and it will likely end up being this bad every year. I have doubt building anything there will be a good idea. I think the pond's a good idea. 
  • nick615nick615 Posts: 1,487
    I'm drawing back from the pond idea on the basis it might dry up completely at some times of the year, thus nuking any livestock it contains?
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