"anon" wrote in message
...
I have a 1970's house in Staffordshire. It's rear garden is
rectangular and only 15m by 10m at a guess. It's slightly sloping
away from the house and large patio. All winter trhe lawn has been
spongy with squelching and surface water. When it rains alot pools of
water form in the edge of the lawn.

When I dug down 1.5' in the lawn the soil was red and seemed to be
clay. Less than four inces down the soil didn't seem too wet,
however the surface water from around the hole soon drained into the
hole.

The previous owner dig some mushroom compost into the borders which
has elevated them above the level of the lawn by 4 - 6". Theree does
not appear to have been any top soil added to the land prior to the
lawn being laid/seeded.

Looking at my neighbors gardens mine seems slightly lower, I wonder if
this is adding to my drainage problem.

What are my options?



K
Regular aeration and scarifying to keep the top soil open also a top
dressing every autumn to bring up your levels .
As a last option you could add gypsum to the soil which would alter the soil
structure and make the clay less heavy