How to get rid of standing water in your garden

Do you have standing water in your garden? This can be a major issue: insects and other pests can colonise standing water, leading to long-term pest control problems.

Your lawn can turn into a muddy ditch if the problem is not dealt with quickly, and your property can become more susceptible to flooding.

If you have plumbing and drainage cover with us—perhaps as part of your home emergency cover service plan—we can arrange for a drainage doctor to fix your external drainage system to clear blockages, reline any cracked or damaged drains, and replace drains that have stopped working. All you need to do is give us a call on our claims line!

However, if your drains work perfectly but you still have standing water, the problem is likely related to the layout of your garden and its gradients. Don’t worry; you can still deal with this problem yourself without any specialised knowledge or equipment.

Plants

Many people think they can deal with standing water by putting a few plants or trees down in the affected area. You can see why they might think this is the case—plants need water to grow!

But a plant or tree in a waterlogged area isn’t going to thrive at all and will almost certainly die as the water stops it from receiving other nutrients.

Landscaping

One of the best ways to deal with standing water is to change the topography of the garden. Water will naturally flow downhill, so if you can create a lower point in the garden next to the external drainage system, you can channel the water away.

A berm is another great way to prevent standing water. Berms are mounds of soil or dirt that are used for a range of reasons, such as elevated flowerbeds. Use fill materials such as soil, sand, rubble, or asphalt to create a berm in the problematic area, and then cover this with soil or compost. Put a few of your favourite plants in the berm to give it an aesthetic appeal.

Bear in mind that you might simply shift the standing water to another part of your garden with this strategy.

Problems with standing water could compel you to create a pond in your garden. Obviously, you should not build a pond if you have no intention of taking care of it properly!

Ground-level ponds can collect dirty water and may not be suitable for all animals, but they will still attract birds and wildlife and can be much easier to keep clean than a dirty puddle of standing water.

Drainage

If you dig drainage ditches, you can channel the water to your external drainage systems. Don’t simply leave the ditch open, however; this will make your garden look untidy and could pose a health and safety risk.

Instead, fill the ditch with gravel and cover it with a thin layer of soil. The water will flow into this ditch and run along it until it reaches the lowest point—ideally a drain.

Topsoil

Standing water on a lawn is usually caused by poor drainage in your garden. You may have clay-heavy soil, which is preventing the water from seeping through your soil to reach the groundwater.

Till the soil when it is dry and add compostable materials to it, then cover this with slower-composing materials such as wood chips and sawdust. This fresher soil will eventually work its way through your garden and improve its drainage.