A green-fingered guru has shared a simple trick for effectively draining your lawn, which can be left waterlogged after rainfall, especially when the water drains away slowly due to heavy or compacted soil
As spring is just around the corner, all gardeners are getting ready for the planting season, although dealing with a soggy lawn can really throw a spanner in the works.
After a downpour, many garden-lovers find their turf waterlogged, a situation often made worse by dense or compacted soil. A drenched lawn isn’t just unlovely to look at; it’s also a breeding ground for algae, moss, and fungal issues, as pointed out by the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS).
To make matters worse, the soaked earth can stifle the growth of delicate grass varieties, which might end up biting the dust, leaving unsightly bald spots on your once lush lawn.
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Thankfully, a gardening whizz has come to the rescue with a nifty trick to get rid of excess water. Enter Gardener Dave, known on TikTok as @davetheplantman, who’s shared his ace drainage method that not only gets rid of puddles but also keeps your green looking tip-top.
Dave, boasting 45 years in horticulture, introduces the clip saying: “I’m back at the new build, which has terrible subsoil because it’s just been run over and squashed by the building work.”
He continues: “I’ve dug a trench so that the border can drain into the trench, but the lawn is sitting very wet. So what I’m doing now is a thing called sand slitting using a spade.”
This drainage trick, highlighted by Lawn and Turf Maintenance, promises minimal damage to the grass and a quick recovery period.
If you’re tackling waterlogged gardens, here’s a tip: carve out a reservoir or a small area on the side of your garden for drainage. Dave advised: “You have to make a nice trough through your lawn leading to the section.
“It looks a bit ugly when you first do it, but the surface water now will run off the top of the turf down that hole and into your reservoir.”
Dave then suggests filling the trench with “very sharp sand or grit or gravel” which allows the grass to eventually cover and conceal the unsightly gap. He added: “But at least it’s getting this grass to drain and it’ll help it to grow. Interesting fact.”
The video has since garnered a wave of positive reactions from viewers, with one commenting: “Going to try this in spring because mine is like a quagmire.”
Another exclaimed: “Great advice, I need to do this as our garden is swamped.”
Another follower remarked: “Really helpful thanks – I have this exact issue,” while someone else shared their success: “I did that, no gravel and emptied a partially flooded field, it works.”
For further soil drainage improvement, the RHS recommends aerating the ground with a garden fork and using lawn feed to strengthen the grass.
