wet soil

Having had a look around the garden to see what is in bud it looks like once again some plants have not made the winter. I have had this problem every spring for the past four or five years since moving here and put it down to the soil. In this area of the garden there is very little top soil and what is there is poor with lots of clay. I always try to pick something that will tolerate most soil conditions but aleays loose a few each year. I put in quite a few dog woods last year to hopefully help dry it out a bit. Has anyone got any suggestions for plants that do well in wet soil. I also always back fill with sand mixed in as well.

 

Hi Scotty,
persicaria species should be ok, they cain grow on almost pure clay and like it moist.
There are different ones, small ground cover or medium height and different shades of light to dark pink..
I would still attempt to get the soil imroved with organic matter.

 

Is there any mileage in digging a Sump Hole to break through the clay.
When I first moved in here (25 yrs ago) the back garden always flooded in heavy rain and I was told "It's always been like that".
I dug a Sump Hole - going down nearly 6' to break through the clay and infilled with rubble (plentiful at that time at the bottom of the garden). It has never flooded since.
My son had a similar problem when he bought his house (same estate). Having dug the famous Sump Hole to get over the problem the neighbours were then grateful because, after the next heavy rain, their lawns were not standing in water. First time in 50 years one guy has had a season without flooding.
It's not an easy job though. Lots of backbreaking work getting through the clay.

 

http://www.bogmyrtle.com/

Makes a great wine too.

 

I would run a trench in, put a perforated drainage pipe in the bottom, some gravel around that, and then back-fill the trench.

I've always found that installing drainage is much easier than trying to get thirsty plants to do the work! You do need to have a "fall" for the drains to go to, otherwise you'll have to dig a soakaway too, and that may not be as effective. Could have a "sump" and a pump though.

 

You could order a pallet load of mushroom compost and dig the lot in to break up and loosen the clay. I did that about this time last year because my garden was no good. Now the soil looks rich and crumbly and generally good.

Apart from being prone to waterlogging, clay's many other problems include that it stays cold for longer over winter, and it becomes compacted excluding air from the roots. It apparently holds nutrients well, but that's little consolation when you have a constant struggle to keep anything other than docks and dandelions alive in it.

 

I was going to suggest improving the soil too. Dig in lots of organic matter to a decent depth. It would also help if you slope the bed slightly so that the water runs off

 

Thanks all for the replys and reckon I'll bite the bullet and try and improved the soil.