How to Help Lawn Drainage

Having a waterlogged lawn causes many problems, including diseases, death of grass, fungus, and weed infestation.

Even if your lawn’s soil doesn’t have any issues with absorbing water, you must improve the drainage before installing a new lawn to prevent any problems from occurring in the future.

I know that you’re probably already busy managing your garden, so I‘ve decided to bring you some of the best methods by which you can get rid of any unwanted amount of water.

4 Steps to Improve Lawn Drainage 

1. Reduce Your Watering Schedule 

First of all, you must consider how many times you water your lawn. You can reduce the amount of water you use, and check to see if the spots where there is usually extra water drain or not. If they do, this means that you give them an amount of water that exceeds their needs. If they don’t, then go on reading. 

2. Aeration

The easiest method you can try is aeration, which means perforating the soil with small holes to help air and water reach the grassroots and improve water absorption. If the drainage issue is not severe, regular aeration would be enough. 

3. Apply Top Dressing 

If the soil is very compacted, regular aeration won’t solve the problem. But it’s not the end of the world; you can still try aerating the soil with topdressing. I advise you to do this during the warm seasons of the year. You can also add gypsum to help the water reach deeper and deeper. 

In case the problem continues and the water compiles even after a fair amount of rain, you need to look for other solutions. 

4. Install Drains

Here are some of the solutions you can try if nothing of the above worked well. 

• French Drain 

Try digging a trench with a 2 to 4% slope to allow the extra water to flow into it. Then at the end of the trench, there should be a pipe covered with gravel. 

• Drywell 

A drywell is an underground structure covered with chambers with dots. This allows water to get easily soaked into the ground.

• Dry Creek Bed

A dry creek bed doesn’t only look gorgeous but also plays a huge role in draining excess water. It is a long trench filled with beautifying stones and gravel that help control the flow of water. 

Final Thoughts 

Waterlogged lawns are a headache, but now you know that fixing them is not as challenging as many people think. You need to try the above steps in their order until you find what works best with your lawn drainage.

Mary

Mary shares a passion for gardening with her husband John, though she is more focused on growing veg on their allotment at St. Margaret’s Allotments, Durham. Mary also works in the lawn care industry and manages the lawns for the Durham University campus.