Browse Forums Landscape & Garden Design 1 Apr 29, 2012 2:40 pm Hey all, I recently put in some landscaping at my place and I'm having some issues with waterlogged soil. Basically, my "backyard" was clay. So I got a rotaty hoe and went to town on it. I put a 50cm raised garden bet around the boarder of my property, added about 10-20cm of top soil (slightly clayish), compacted and added a touch more topsoil on that. In the garden bed I put a 10cm AG line that rules into one of my downpipes. But, the tuesday I finished with the soil the area I live in got 40mm odd of rain in the space of about 4 hours. I'm in cranbourne and we got a special mention in the weather for the amount of rain we got. Now, I have a few spots around the yard that are waterlogged. They are literally like quicksand. Not would this issue have come up because it rained so heavily on freshly put down soil? And how can I help these waterlogged spots drain? One is about 1m x 0.5m near my hot water unit where I wasn't able to compact the dirt so well due to access and the other is right next to my wifes vegi garden. this one is about 1m x 1m. It's just strange as I have AG lines that are almost dry while the soil seems to be retaining a LOT of water. It's been amost a week since the heavy rain and the waterlogged spots where a little soft the first time I walked on them, but then after stepping on those spots the ground is again during to jelly. The soil on top seems moist but not wet but the soil under it seems to be mud. Thoughts? Advice? Things I could try? Poking a stick in the ground? Anything! Just want to know if there is anything I can do as I want to put spaced pavers and peddles in those areas as they are path areas and I am hoping I don't have to wait until summer when it dries before I can do anything. Thanks in advance! Re: Waterlogged Soil - Landscaping 1 week old. :( 2Apr 29, 2012 3:40 pm 40mm is a lot of water so it takes a while for this amount of water to drain through the soil. By compacting the soil you have slowed the drainage rate through it to the AG drains. I'm not a soil expert but Gypsum dug in seems to help. The Harder You Try - the Luckier You Get ! Web site http://www.anewhouse.com.au Informative, Amusing, and Opinionated Blog - Over 600 posts on all aspects of building a new house. Re: Waterlogged Soil - Landscaping 1 week old. :( 3Apr 29, 2012 6:28 pm Big no with the compacting, the water wont penetrate the compacted soil layer so the soil above it will stay water logged. Dig through a compacted area and see if its dry right through the soil profile. If its dry around 300mm and the top is sodden theres the problem. Obviously this is for planted areas not paths paving etc. Hi Everyone I learned something this week that I thought would be worth sharing. In NSW a lot of developers of subdivisions put covenants on the land which normally… 0 6559 Hi, we live in an area where the black soil is prone to a lot of movement. We have an old 50's house with masonite everywhere and nails popping out, warping, rusted etc.… 0 4510 Hmmm, I have checked your past posts and it seems that you are in NSW, not WA as I had thought. It pays to show your State in your avatar. Retaining wall regulations… 5 7857 |