Clay Soil Garden Drainage

Hi guys,

I'm brand new to the forum and quite a new gardener. I need help significantly improving the drainage in my clay-ridden front lawn.

I have been in my house for around 5 years and I reckon the previous occupants (also here for around 5 years prior to me) were not gardeners so the front garden really hasn't had any attention for at least 10 years!

Last year i decided to have a go at sorting the lawn. It was around 75% moss and thatch and didn't require much cutting! That said, it looked awful so.....

I put down weed/moss killer, raked it up, then used the scarifier around 3 times! I bought a hollow-tined aerator and had a go (I managed it but it killed my back)! Just when i put down seeds and covered with topsoil - we had the most incredible heat wave (you will all remember it i'm sure!) and the soil baked hard and cracked (even though i thoroughly watered it every evening)! That's when i realised just re-seeding and aerating was not going to be enough!

Now, when it rains heavily or for long periods, my garden path floods. There is a small (toughly 1.5m x 1m) but significant sloping grass area between me and my next door neighbour (i'm the middle of a 3 terrace) and this doesn't help I'm sure. The remainder of the lawn is roughly 9m2.

I have previously used liquid aeration (but i think the ground was still too hard and probably too far gone for that to work on it's own?

My next problem is that i have a bad back and, just mowing the lawn (with a Flymo!) hurts so i really want to avoid digging up and working loads or lumpy, clay soil if i can.

I also bought 'Clay Breaker' (2.5 kg) and 'Calcified Seaweed' (2.5 kg) but didn't get the chance to use them so not sure if either (or both) are options too?

Anyway, I'm looking for advice on improving the drainage significantly without ripping up the entire lawn and starting again. That said, if that's the only way, i'll need to get help or pay someone to help!

Finally, last year when mowing the lawn, i left the cuttings on on it to 'mulch' thinking that would help however, i was wondering what the best advice would be for then removing this grass before the next mowing as i understand that you need to remove the old mulch before leaving the new stuff on? Sometimes, the grass grows really quickly and it will become very difficult to rake it before cutting again.

Sorry for the long-winded explanation here but i thought it was worth explaining what i've done so far to the lawn.

Oh, also, i heard introducing worms would be a good idea but i figured digging it up, etc would be best done first?!

Thanks in advance.

 

Hi @Brian McDonagh welcome! I'd agree with @Marley Farley, particularly as it is a front lawn, rather than a back one which could be fun for children etc. The solution of putting down weed membrane and then gravel is relatively cheap. To stop the garden path flooding, you might need to dig a small soakaway - a ditch next to the path, and then fill with gravel to take the excess water. I know that is tough with back trouble, but do it a little at a time...

 

Hi guys,

Thanks for the reply @Marley Farley and @CarolineL

I had considered hard landscaping, particularly as the front only gets a few hours of sun in the morning.

The soakaway is a good idea - I guess this would work, even if I stick with grass (maybe edge the grass with the gravel filled soakaway?).

I’ll give it more thought.....

Thanks again for your thoughts so far.

 

Hi @Brian McDonagh, welcome!

I'm following this with interest as I also have heavy clay soil and bad back. Not a great combination! Here's my moan with plenty of very helpful advise from the forum.

A soakaway is a good idea. I dug a small circular gravel bed around the bird feeder, and it has improved the drainage around it a lot. Mine is a small one, one spade deep with weed- suppressing membrane and plastic lawn edging finishing at grass root level. The bed is filled with gravel and pebbles on top and there is a Sarococca and an evergreen Lonicera planted through the membrane.

Let us know what you decide to do and how it goes. Good luck!

 

Thanks again for your comments so far guys. I think i am going to give the grass one more attempt before i give up! So, in the next few weeks i hope to get started. Ideally, i will hire a rotovator and mix with some clay breaker with a bed of small pebbles at the bottom. Therafter, re-seed and cross my fingers! I will then try the soakaway idea. Wish me luck!

 

You could always use artificial turf.

 

Hi,

Not meaning to put a dampener on your plans, but a soakaway is not a simple as it sounds.
The ground its in has to be able to soak away the water , but if its all clay its going nowhere.
Even if it could, you need a very large hole to cope with the area you are covering plus what comes down the path.

What we cannot see is how does the garden sit in relation to the house, eg sloping away, towards or level.
Is it possible if you put in some drainage channels in the lawn /path edge that could be connected to the house drains, so the water is actually removed. ( perhaps not allowed these days, but who knows ?)