I think I will have to redo my raised beds.

[obsessed]

I two of my raised beds are too low and are holding water when ever it rains. Which here is like every other day. I am going to wait to see how the season goes but I think I may need to move them this fall. I live in suburbia so there in not much room to move them too. I can move them to a bit higher ground but that will involve cutting down some trees. I could try to fix the drainage thing except well I don't know how. I could probably hire someone. Would a regular contractor work or should I get landscaper person. Crap all that work would need to be redone.

What do you guys think?


Yay the photo thing worked....................

 

[vfem]

I wouldn't chance it... I would add a second level to them so you know the water is running out. Maybe make then 12" deep rather then the 4"-6" you have them now?!

 

[beavis]

Is this the rainiest season for you right now? If it is I wouldn't worry too much about it, when your growing time comes then perhaps it wouldn't be too much of an issue.

However, if you want to improved the drainage situation, get out your shovel or hoe and make a trench to divert the standing water elsewhere in your yard. Kind of like digging an irrigation trench where the excess water will travel downstream and drain off from your raised beds.

Also, you could increase the height of your raised beds with more lumber and soil.

OR put down pea gravel in the paths...

Many options, but I wouldn't go the contractor route unless its the last straw.

 

[patandchickens]

Aw, you don't need any sort of contractor -- you just need a trench, ditch or gentle swale that goes around the beds and then leads water away to some lower ground. That will be quite adequate as long as there *is* lower ground and only requires a shovel. I'd suggest peeling back the turf, doing the ditch/swale/whatever, then replacing the turf as best possible so that you don't have a bare dirt ditch. (Just for aesthetics and soil conservation).

If by some chance there is absolutely no lower ground available, either build the raised beds higher (and you might want to put some fill dirt/sand around them, too); or if your subsoil drains ok you could dig a 'soakaway', i.e. a real big wide deep hole that you fill with coarse rock or concrete rubble and then top with landscape fabric and soil. (A soakaway will not work if the water table is always near the surface where you live, or if your subsoil is five or fifteen feet of impenetrable clay )

Good luck, you can fix it well enough to grow stuff I'm sure ,

Pat

 

[obsessed]

I love you guys. I am going to dig a trench this weekend. It must be spring cause I don't have a minute to spare.