Building a Raised Bed

The most common way to improve drainage in your garden is to build a raised bed. You'll be surprised at how much better your water drainage will be with this simple change. Dig a hole and fill it with water and return in a day when all of the water has evaporated. You'll notice an almost immediate improvement once you've planted your new bed. The additional soil promotes root development.

Simultaneously, evaporation and decomposition are discouraged. All of these factors combined create an ideal environment for almost any plant to grow in.

If your current planting goals include plants that require good water drainage, I'm sure you've experienced the frustration of having a yard that refuses to cooperate. Some plants can withstand the excess water that results from living in a poorly drained area. In fact, it may cause them to bloom more profusely. Other plants, on the other hand, do not fare as well, and will die a gruesome, bloated death. You should always research the drainage requirements for each plant you purchase and ensure that it will not conflict with any of the areas you intend to plant it in.

Dig a hole about ten inches deep to see how much water your designated patch of soil will retain. Fill it with water and return in a day when all of the water has evaporated. Fill it up once more. If the water in the second hole isn't gone in 10 hours, your soil has a low saturation point. This means that when water soaks into it, it will remain for an extended period of time before dissipating. This is unacceptable for almost any plant, and you will need to take action if you want your plants to survive.

The most common way to improve drainage in your garden is to build a raised bed. This entails making a border for a small bed and filling it with enough soil and compost to raise it at least 5 inches above the rest of the yard. You'll be surprised at how much better your water drainage will be with this simple change. If you want to build a raised bed, you should choose between grass and dirt. You should build it slightly differently for each of these scenarios.

You won't have much trouble starting a raised garden in a non-grassy area. Simply create a border to keep the dirt you'll be adding in place. Nothing works as well as a couple of two by fours, in my opinion. After you've built the wall, you'll need to fill it with soil and steer manure. Depending on how long you intend to wait before planting, adjust the ratio to account for any deterioration that may occur.

You will have a slightly more difficult time installing a raised bed where there is already sod. You'll need to cut the sod around the garden's perimeter and flip it over. This may appear to be a simple task, but you will need something with a very sharp edge to cut the edges of the sod and get under it. After you've turned everything upside down, add a layer of straw to keep the grass from growing back up. Simply add all of the soil and steer manure that a typical garden would require after the straw layer.

Planting your plants in your new location should be simple. It's essentially the same as your typical planting session. Just make sure the roots don't go too deep into the original ground level. The purpose of the raised bed is to keep the roots out of the easily saturating soil. Having long roots that extend that far negates the point entirely.

You'll notice an almost immediate improvement once you've planted your new bed. The additional soil promotes root development. Simultaneously, evaporation and decomposition are discouraged. All of these factors combined create an ideal environment for almost any plant to grow in. So don't be put off by the prospect of changing the topography of your yard. As I'm sure you've realized, the process is simple, and the long-term benefits are well worth the effort.