How to Build a Garden on a Wet Ground

Bring some tropical beauty to a wet garden with brightly colored canna flowers.

If you have always wanted to transform that wet section of your yard into a beautiful garden, do not let the mud and puddles discourage you. Areas with poor water drainage can make garden planning a bit more difficult but certainly not impossible. Make the wet section of your landscape stand out like a rainforest paradise, rather than an eyesore by adding some tropical plants. With a little bit of ground care and a proper selection of water-loving plants, your garden will blossom and thrive.

Things You'll Need

• Plastic stakes
• String
• Rake
• Shovel
• Garden claw tool
• Organic matter (compost)
• Water-friendly plants, bulbs or seeds
• Slow-release fertilizer
• Topsoil

Instructions

1. <ark the perimeter of the new garden with plastic stakes and string. Insert a peg every 12 to 18 inches all the way around the perimeter. Tie the end of the string to one peg, pull it to the next and wrap the string around the second peg. Continue on to the third peg and then all the way around the perimeter. Once the perimeter of the garden is delineated with the string, stand back to make sure the garden will be the size and shape you had envisioned. Adjust any pegs if necessary.

2. Clear the area within the perimeter of any debris. Rake out any surface debris, and then use a shovel to dig out any grass or weeds.

3. Turn over the dirt in the garden. Use a garden tool with a claw-like end to turn over the soil at least six inches down. This aerates the soil that may have been compacted over time. Mix in some organic matter (compost) into any hard, gray areas. This is likely clay, which requires the organic matter to improve the physical properties of the soil.

4. Create a water drainage system to prevent rainwater from washing away top soil and seedlings. Dig a channel in an inconspicuous area of the new garden. Dig down at least six to eight inches and make the channel at least 6 inches wide. Direct the channel toward a downward sloping area of the landscape or add a small pond next to the garden, and direct the channel into the pond.

5. Plot out the location for each plant in the garden by inserting plastic stakes. Choose plants and bulbs that thrive in wet soil, such as checkered lilies, American turkscap lilies and summer snowflake. If you live in a warm climate, create a wet garden with a tropical feel by adding plants from the canna family, such as spotted Cleopatras, Lucifers and Wyoming cannas. Other beautiful tropical plants that thrive in a warm, wet climate include the flowering hibiscus plant and hoya climbing plants.

6. Dig a hole at the first plastic stake. Add some slow-release fertilizer to the hole and then add the seeds, bulb or plant. Fill any remaining space with topsoil and give the area a little bit of water. Move over to the next stake and repeat until your garden is full.

7. Clean out the garden every autumn. Rake out any fallen leaves and other debris. This helps to prevent fungus, mildew and crown rot that can be caused by a combination of leaf cover and the wet soil. Trim back any perennials. In the spring, dig in a feeding of slow-release fertilizer as well as compost in any clay-heavy areas. Maintain the drainage channel by keeping it dug out from spring through autumn.

Tips & Warnings

• Check the planting instructions for each plant, bulb or seeds you choose for your garden. Some of these will need to be planted at different times throughout the season.

References

• Managing the Wet Garden: Plants That Flourish in Problem Places; John Simmons
• Easy Gardens for the South; Pamela Crawford, et al.