I'm leveling out my garden and have a lot of extra soil, so I'm thinking of building a mound about a foot high across the length of my backyard. The reason for this is that my garden tends to turn into a mud pit, especially since I live at the bottom of a hill where water from the nearby garden drains into mine. I want the mound to help slow down the water enough so it can drain into the soil better. I have a few questions: What kinds of safe plants can I use to cover this mound and help hold the soil together? Would I need to do any maintenance for it, and are there any potential issues with creating this mound?
1 Answer
Instead of just a mound, you might want to think about digging a land drain to divert the incoming water to a soakaway or somewhere else. You could use the extra soil to raise the garden level. This way, you manage the water flow better without just piling it up.
I initially thought about putting in a French drain, but my garden is really tricky. It’s about 5ft above ground with concrete slabs underneath and two big trees on diagonal corners, so it has a massive root system. I've only managed to level part of it, about 5ft by 10ft, going 2ft deep.