Grass drainage/muddy lawn

[robbieee]

So my 65m2 lawn is reall muddy. The drainage is poor.

So got a landscaper up and he said it would need to be dug down 6 inches and gravel put in place. Then turfed. He said that would be the only way to solve my muddy lawn. Its muddy all over.

I asked him about french drains but the said it wouldnt work.

He then quoted £4300!!

What are my options? I don't have a clue about lawn drainage, any pointers would be appreciated!!!

Got another thread about putting decking over it... just not sure...

 

[r896neo]

If the ground is heavy clay then french drains don't really work and a blanket drain is probably the only sure fire cure.

It involves excavating the whole area and importing tons and tons of clean stone and then new topsoil so is a massive undertaking hence the price.

Get a few more quotes and then you will at least be able to make an informed choice whether its worth it or not. Be wary of general quotes where they do not specify exactly what is to be done.

As a comparison you could probably have the garden paved over and new drainage added to take surface water for similar money to that quote.

 

[davemar]

I'm currently in the process of replacing my old lawn on clay soil. I removed the old turf (hadn't been touched for 2 years so very straggly) in the winter, to reveal the underlying soil. I was left with basically a clay mud bath in the wet weather. I tried digging a deep hole (1.5m deep) with a drain channel really to see if any sort of drainage would be feasible. The hole filled up with water OK, but never drained out, so the clay layer is very thick.

I don't think gravel is the way to go to improve the soil, and the RHS seem to agree with this. The water can't drain down, so you need lots of organic matter to absorb it, and rely on surface evaporation to dry it. I'm aiming to dig in a load of compost and then a layer of topsoil before laying turf.

So far, all I've done is chucked some bark compost on it, and dug it in a little. Even with the thin scattering of that, it had improved things, preventing the clay from clagging up, and absorbing some moisture.

Maybe get another quote and suggestion from someone else, and in the meantime maybe start digging up the turf as it probably needs to be done regardless.

 

[robbieee]

A patio is out the question... I just want my daughter to have an area to run about in.

Really dont know what to do to solve this! Cant afford £4300! Got another guy coming tomorrow (hopefully!!)

Any other opinions would be great...

 

[Nige F]

I'm currently in the process of replacing my old lawn on clay soil. I removed the old turf (hadn't been touched for 2 years so very straggly) in the winter, to reveal the underlying soil. I was left with basically a clay mud bath in the wet weather. I tried digging a deep hole (1.5m deep) with a drain channel really to see if any sort of drainage would be feasible. The hole filled up with water OK, but never drained out, so the clay layer is very thick.

I don't think gravel is the way to go to improve the soil, and the RHS seem to agree with this. The water can't drain down, so you need lots of organic matter to absorb it, and rely on surface evaporation to dry it. I'm aiming to dig in a load of compost and then a layer of topsoil before laying turf.

So far, all I've done is chucked some bark compost on it, and dug it in a little. Even with the thin scattering of that, it had improved things, preventing the clay from clagging up, and absorbing some moisture.

.

Can you keep us posted - long term even Sussex Clay is a right s o d - my latest effort @ son`s garden will be to rotavate small lawn , rake off and recycle bin for the debris , then re seed

 

[r896neo]

Robbie, be very wary of people who have not done this sort of work before. Ideally you want a reference for somewhere that you can contact where the drainage they did solved the problem.

There are lots of people out there who think that if a lawn is too wet a herringbone drainage network will solve all problems and they take no notice of your specific site and or ground type.

In short lots of people have some idea but aren't really in a position to offer concrete options that will definately work.

Of course a herringbone system may work in your property This is not the sort of thing you can advise on over the internet but just be careful that because one quote is 2300 rather than 4300 doesn't mean it will work.

 

[robbieee]

Thats the 3rd gardener that hasnt turned up to quote now...

So will have to sort this out myself...

Is there anyway to test out on a small area to see if something works?

 

[r896neo]

Its by far the busiest time of year for landscapers but not turning up is terrible and totally unprofessional. You don't want those people in your garden anyway.

google soakaway perculation test.

 

[robbieee]

Not sure if that test would help would it? not sure. I know my soil isnt draining away so i am pretty sure it would just fail the test...

 

[robbieee]

up

 

[J_N30]

I have a similar problem all be it ononlu a 36m2 lawn.

Is it possible to dig in linking channels falling to a drain filling with gravel then topsoil and turf? I'm wondering if it would help at all or just a waste of time.

 

[robbieee]

I think that probably is the way to go. It's a total mud bath at the moment. Will wait and see how good the summer is.

 

[curium]

I have a similar problem. The clay in our garden doesn't drain well. I'll tell you what I've done but it's too early to say it it effective or not.

First thing I did was put in a path so I could avoid walking on the grass when the soil was wet. This just compacts the soil and makes the drainage problem worse.

View media item 77142
After the path was in I dug up the rest of the garden, mixed in a load of the sharp sand left over from laying the path and bought a few bags of manure. I hired a rotovator and mixed the whole lot in.

View media item 74390
After a nice dry spell I broke up any clods and levelled as best I could and sowed some grass seed which seems to be doing well although I will need to overseed in autumn.

View media item 77143
I've also dug up the bottom of the garden so it is about 100mm lower than the lawn. Hopefully this will encourage the water to collect down there, eventually I will fill this space with pebbles and a few stepping stones.

 

[sergeantash]

Initially, buy yourself a hollow aerator tool, use it over the entire lawn with it and dispose of the small bits of soil that it throws out - this will help drainage and might eventually be sufficient to solve your issue.

I aerate my lawn with one of these every few feet or so, seems to have done the trick and the lawn is no longer damp and muddy - the grass is also flourishing!

One like this:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bosmere-N460-Hollow-Tine-Aerator/dp/B000QZ5IMY

 

[robbieee]

Initially, buy yourself a hollow aerator tool, use it over the entire lawn with it and dispose of the small bits of soil that it throws out - this will help drainage and might eventually be sufficient to solve your issue.

I aerate my lawn with one of these every few feet or so, seems to have done the trick and the lawn is no longer damp and muddy - the grass is also flourishing!

One like this:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bosmere-N460-Hollow-Tine-Aerator/dp/B000QZ5IMY[/QUOTE]

Tried it, didn't work. Even bought a a hollow aerator and an an electric scarifier too!