In article ,
Ohioguy wrote:

I've got a small area of soil right next to our house that I'm having
trouble with. It is roughly 3' wide and maybe 14 or 15' long, right up
against the west side of the house, between the house and the sidewalk,
near the front door.

I planted several things there this Spring, and everything has died.
I dug down in there, and found that the soil is staying very, very
wet. Also, though the good topsoil goes down about 3", the underlying
material is simply gravel, and that is wet too. There is no water or
anything visible there, and no water actually rushes into a hole when I
dig, but it evidently stays the wettest spot I've ever tried to garden in.

Yesterday I realized why - the prevailing wind and weather here comes
from the SW, and when it rains against the side of the house, the water
just runs down the side of the house and down into this little area. I
mulched the area, which probably holds the moisture in even more. I
don't think there is any good drainage under the sidewalk, so the water
just sort of sits there. I could probably grow rice there without too
much trouble!

So, I have two choices, really. I could start thinking of growing
only plants that don't mind having a lot of water just a few inches
below the surface.


Or, I could dig everything out down to about 9", leave two or three
trenches, and mound up some light, organic soil, sand and peat moss in
between the trenches, and plant there. I thought about trying to get
the area drained better, but I don't see any easy way to put in drainage
tile or anything like that, without busting out the walkway. That might
be a project to consider next year.


Anyone ever have a situation like this? How did you handle it?

How about a 3" or 4" dia. hose to run the water out to where it won't be
a bother,
or
you could try raised beds, or simply an earthen mound 6" to 12" high,
circular or rectangular.
--
- Billy
"Fascism should more properly be called corporatism because it is the
merger of state and corporate power." - Benito Mussolini.
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