Will a flower bed against bricks of house cause problems?

[DIYNotIan]

Hi all

I was planning on making a small flower bed in the corner of my garden, where the garden meets the house. I'd prefer it if the bed went right up to the house, but if it did it would mean some soil would be against the bricks of the house up to the level of the damp course. It didn't even occur to me that this could be a potential problem, but when I was speaking to my dad recently he said it could cause damp issues.

So I thought I'd post here to see what you guys think.

The damp course is above the second row of bricks in this photo:

Here's a photo of the whole area, and another showing what I had in mind to do.

If it would potentially cause problems with damp, is there anything I could put between the soil and bricks to remedy the situation. My dad said no, and said I should end the bed before it reaches the bricks, so that there is a gap for the bricks to "breathe".

Any thoughts would be most appreciated. I'd love for the bed to go right up to the house but at the same time do not want to cause any problems.

Many thanks

Max

 

[tomfe]

Is it going to be a raised bed? If so you will rot the fence as well..if you are just planning to remove the gravel and put a bed in then you'll be fine going up to the bricks below your damp proof course.

 

[endecotp]

Have you identified where the damp proof course is?
It's not obvious to me from the photo.
Basically you don't want damp soil in contact with the wall above the damp proof course.

 

[^woody^]

Put thick polyphene up against the fence and wall.

But it looks like you already have a damp issue above the dpc. Blocked cavity? Or is that an overflow dripping in the wall

And coat that cill and frame first.

 

[John D v2.0]

If it would potentially cause problems with damp, is there anything I could put between the soil and bricks to remedy the situation.

Yes I think your dad's right, you need to put fresh air.
However if the prevailing rain comes the other way and/or your cavity is clear, you might get away with it being up to the dpc. The gap below is needed for splashing of rain. You could even put a canopy over although that would be overkill.
Another official option is to cut in a damp course covering from under the dpc up to two bricks above the soil level.