"Janet Price" wrote in message
...
I have heavy clay soil with several soggy areas and am looking for an
inexpensive way to eliminate or reduce them.

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Janet,

I live in the NW's Willamette valley, which is prone to Clay soils. They're
marvelously fertile, aren't they? But the dickens to drain. I ended up
with semi "dry wells" all over the low spots in my yard. I dig 2-3 feet
down in the low areas, and fill the holes almost full with crushed (not
river) rock. The crushed gravel will have bigger gaps betwen stones, and
more water will fit there. Pat a 2-3 inch mound over the top with the
left-over soil, and cap it with the sod you carefully removed before you
started digging. The mound will subside within the first year, and the
water will stay down underground where it belongs. Since I'm in the Valley,
I don't worry too much about drought, but you should watch to make sure the
areas over the dry wells get enough water in the late summer.

Hope this helps!

skg