Best advice to cure flooding garden

[Hazelb]

Ok I'll suggest some shrubs good with clay soil:

If you need specific information about any of the plants check out the RHS web site
http://www.rhs.org.uk

You can get usefull info off this site with out needing to be a member.

I would sugest a mix of shrubs. Key ones being evergreen or at least holding their leaves.

If you want a wide border you could plant lower srowing shrubs infront that have nice flowers or colourful/ steams leave in the winter.

For main shrubs that are evergreen:
Vibernum species ( check plant labels some are evergreen some arn't)
Choisya Ternata ( sundance is a nice yellow leaved variety )
Mahonia species

Some other large growing shhrubs for colour and scent but not evergreen
Philadelphus - lovely scent, yellow or green leaved varieties available.
ribes sanguineum- lovely late spring flowers
Cornus - 'mid winter fire' 'westernbrit' cut back plant hard every 2 years for beautiful autum/winter stem colour

Shorter ( forground) shubs for clay ( evergreen)
Spiraea species
Potenetilla

Theses should be fine in mud/ baked clay.

In the 'expert' series of book there is one called the 'flowering shrub expert'. I'd recomend that book. But always check plant labels as different varieties of shrubs can have very different habits!

A nice small tree would go by the corner of the 'play house' It would bring the 'eye' into the garden and detract from the houses beyond.

I would recomend a crab apple such as 'goldern hornet' or 'John downie'

If you have kids it would be grate for them to plant a tree and watch it grow! - Let me know if you want tree planting advice!

 

[breezer]

so drains it is then?

Breezer, Why are you so rude and arrogant, I have spent a few minutes looking at your previous posts and you don't seem to be of much help to others, People like myself come on this site for valuable knowledge in the diy "trade" and to be told, "try ebay", "drains it is then", "try Maplins" aint much help is it. Your posts are generally short and non descriptive.
I can envisage you as some grumpy shop keeper with the brown overalls on and when someone calls into your shop for something you look at them over the top of your glasses in a , how dare you interrupt my newspaper time, kind of way and simply say, nahhhh try ebay,
The advice and time i have received from HazelB has helped me no end, such detail and indepth advice goes a long way to solving problems and enlightening the grey matter.
Your watergardens link tells me a lot about yourself.
Only enough tools for one toolbox

what ever.

come and look at it from my point of view

you have drainage problem, but dont want to spend money or waste time (its what you first said)

in the end you are going to do what ever (drains?) but that contradicts what you first said, in that you dont want to spend money or waste time.

as for short answers you have to remember this is a diy forum, to me yours is a valid question, (almost) but others come on here saying where can i get .........

look at the replies, a quick search on google often reveals the answer

also look in uk electrics, plumbing read some of the posts in there, look at those replies (not from just me) they often say see refernce section, if people were to give all the information in the first place (as you almost did) this would be a better DIY forum, its not a glorifeid search engine

I do not have a bad attitude, I only reply in the same manner in which the post is made.

lets not argue, by al means disagree with me, (if you want) but you are the one who is arrogant.

come, lets have a virtual pint

 

[skybluescooby]

and just to end this conversation as i buy yet another virtual pint forcing me to slash my budget on the garden............i would guess spending money on topsoil and spending money on drains is a completely different ball game when it comes to cost. Topsoil, i feel, would be a dramitically far cheaper option to the cost of laying drains would it not.
Me arrogant eh ???? Outside now..

 

[countygardens]

and just to end this conversation as i buy yet another virtual pint forcing me to slash my budget on the garden............i would guess spending money on topsoil and spending money on drains is a completely different ball game when it comes to cost. Topsoil, i feel, would be a dramitically far cheaper option to the cost of laying drains would it not.
Me arrogant eh ???? Outside now..

Dont mean to butt in but if you bought the drians yourself and did the work yourself, then it probably wouldnt work out very different in price. Of course it would depend where you ran the drains. If they purely went along the fence on the offending side of the garden then it wouldnt be too expensive. Check out prices of drainage pipes at Wickes (wouldnt usually recomend them but for drainage they are hard to beat.)

 

[skybluescooby]

cheers , two thing to point here,
1- i'm competent in laying topsoil and the chances of it being a success are far greater than it not being.
2- I wouldn't know where to start, Drains, once all the work is done, what if it does not work ? means time and money lost and no further forward.
I would rather pay some one to put drains in, hence the expense question but could re level my lawn myself if you get my drift.
Might just whack 50 square metres of concrete on instead, that should solve it.

 

[Nige F]

Here`s my 2 pennyworth I`m looking at the garages outside your bottom fence....are they in a block on common ground?.if so, I would dig a diagonal trench from house rt. corner to left corner fence, say 18 ins. deep....peabeach and a straight perforated pipe.cover with terram fabric.then topsoil as you plan to. So the end of the trench by the fence hopefully lets out some water inconspicuosely to the concrete area in front of the garages. The pipe within the peabaech just creates a void.it`s fall is not crucial........You could do that bit of drainage yourself