A good idea would be to assess and address the drainage. This can be done in an afternoon with a shovel, a few bags of gravel, and some perforated 60mm pipe. If the plot adjacent is empty (the trees) then you could discharge into there.
I'd also consider nipping 20mm off the bottom of that fence to keep its feet dry. Never seen one without a gravel board before...
That's my theory too @McRazz. The area needs to be looked at properly and assessed. It may be as simple as I suggested earlier with a bit of compaction, since - going by the description, it's probably clay. It may only need a bit of extra organic matter and general loosening up, then suitable shrubs/plants. Trying to plant anything without addressing the drainage is pointless though. Bog plants won't work well if the area dries out too much in summer.
The area in question is north to north west facing. It's well described in the opening post. The garden is south facing, and the bit with the problem is top left .
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Hello everyone. Wow what a brilliant forum this is, thanks to all those who have taken the time to answer.
I'll answer some of the questions as best I can:
Have I dug down? No, but it sounds like the best next step. I suspect it will be largely clay too.
I do have a plan for the whole garden, well...almost! I wanted to tackle this bit next as its the only unsightly bit, and our main focus when looking from the house.
Fairygirl, I'm in Newcastle upon Tyne, which to be honest, is not as wet an area as many think, certainly a lot drier than the North West where I am originally from, but we have had a bucket load of rain last few days.
The area does definitely dry up in the summer, but in the cooler months it does stay damp. Only twice has it pooled like in the photos in our 18 months at the house.
I'll definitely look up 'Finally My Own Garden' on here, thanks!
Unfortunately the No Mans Land isn't in my deeds. Thats an idea we checked too.
We thought of a pond as well but thought the leaves would cause havoc.
I dont think we can put any perforated pipe into the No Mans land as it is literally 1 metre if that and I'd hate to be responsible for giving them a problem. Great idea about taking 20mm off the bottom of the fence though.
Ultimately, I love the idea of a bed, probably with a bit of a curve along the back with green foliage as someone suggested. I suppose my next questions are, how deep do I dig? What do I fill with? Is there anything else to consider?
I had trouble with the garden flooding at our last house which was a new build, the builders refused to help so we dug a ditch down the lower side, put weed membrane in and filled it with pea shingle, then folded the weed membrane over the top of the shingle and topped it with soil, it never flooded after that and we didn’t do it properly (as in digging down past the clay layer)
The garden behind had it’s patio area behind our shed, and it flooded every year but we never suffered despite being lower.
I later added a grass section on top of the ditch and it never suffered for it, so I think you could do something similar then put a raised bed on top with no problems
Dig a hole around a foot deep, or as near as you can manage to that, and see what the soil is like that you take out, and also what it's like round about that. If any water is draining away reasonably well, it's not going to be too bad. As a general guide, if you dig a hole big enough to plant something in a 6 or 7 inch pot, and the amount you take out fills a bucket, that means it's compacted clay. Been there, done that many times. How you proceed from there, will depend on what you want to achieve, how much effort you want to put in, and how patient you are. It can be quite a long process improving the soil well enough to plant direct, but it's not impossible, and if it's just a bit of compaction from the builders, that's much easier than amending solid layers that have been there for a long time. From what you describe with the recent rainfall, and drier in summer, it sounds like it's just compaction and not a major problem. I'd want to address the fence first if it was my plot. Get a layer of brick, block or concrete under those planks
Big woody shrubs/trees will adapt more rapidly to wetter, heavier conditions than perennials, or anything 'softer', so bear that in mind for that corner. Organic matter will help the structure and drainage, and helps avoid that cracking through long dry spells. That's why it's such a good approach - it does both jobs. Unless there's an underlying pan of solid clay, it's perfectly possible to get a bed/border along there with a bit of effort. The whole area might be the same, or it might just be that end, so if you want a larger planted area, it's worth doing a bit of digging at various points along the fence
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Posts
I'd also consider nipping 20mm off the bottom of that fence to keep its feet dry. Never seen one without a gravel board before...
Trying to plant anything without addressing the drainage is pointless though. Bog plants won't work well if the area dries out too much in summer.
The area in question is north to north west facing. It's well described in the opening post. The garden is south facing, and the bit with the problem is top left .
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I'll answer some of the questions as best I can:
Have I dug down? No, but it sounds like the best next step. I suspect it will be largely clay too.
I do have a plan for the whole garden, well...almost! I wanted to tackle this bit next as its the only unsightly bit, and our main focus when looking from the house.
Fairygirl, I'm in Newcastle upon Tyne, which to be honest, is not as wet an area as many think, certainly a lot drier than the North West where I am originally from, but we have had a bucket load of rain last few days.
The area does definitely dry up in the summer, but in the cooler months it does stay damp. Only twice has it pooled like in the photos in our 18 months at the house.
I'll definitely look up 'Finally My Own Garden' on here, thanks!
Unfortunately the No Mans Land isn't in my deeds. Thats an idea we checked too.
We thought of a pond as well but thought the leaves would cause havoc.
I dont think we can put any perforated pipe into the No Mans land as it is literally 1 metre if that and I'd hate to be responsible for giving them a problem. Great idea about taking 20mm off the bottom of the fence though.
Ultimately, I love the idea of a bed, probably with a bit of a curve along the back with green foliage as someone suggested. I suppose my next questions are, how deep do I dig? What do I fill with? Is there anything else to consider?
Thanks everyone!
As a general guide, if you dig a hole big enough to plant something in a 6 or 7 inch pot, and the amount you take out fills a bucket, that means it's compacted clay. Been there, done that many times.
How you proceed from there, will depend on what you want to achieve, how much effort you want to put in, and how patient you are. It can be quite a long process improving the soil well enough to plant direct, but it's not impossible, and if it's just a bit of compaction from the builders, that's much easier than amending solid layers that have been there for a long time. From what you describe with the recent rainfall, and drier in summer, it sounds like it's just compaction and not a major problem.
I'd want to address the fence first if it was my plot. Get a layer of brick, block or concrete under those planks
Big woody shrubs/trees will adapt more rapidly to wetter, heavier conditions than perennials, or anything 'softer', so bear that in mind for that corner. Organic matter will help the structure and drainage, and helps avoid that cracking through long dry spells. That's why it's such a good approach - it does both jobs.
Unless there's an underlying pan of solid clay, it's perfectly possible to get a bed/border along there with a bit of effort. The whole area might be the same, or it might just be that end, so if you want a larger planted area, it's worth doing a bit of digging at various points along the fence
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...