Hi! We moved into a new house already landscape by the builder 4 years ago. The plants were barely surviving. I tried to plant other plants in that bed only to notice stagnant water. SO, this last week we have taken all the plants out and took the mulch off (the kind that do not decompose) and started digging a little. The builder had added a layer of sand on top of the clay. We removed some soil and tried to mix in the sand into the clay (about the top 6"). It rained last night and this morning we saw a little pond in our front bed!!! This bed is surrounded by a sidewalk. What should we do about it? What's the best way to resolve the problem?
We live in North fort Worth, TX

Thank you!
Sophie Higbie

Is there gutter around that part of the house? To me, the bed looks too low. I'm not a landscape designer but you might need one. I would recommend that you call someone to get just a consultation, then you could probably follow their suggestion and fix it yourself without paying them to do so.

Maybe that's a good idea. I might do that. I just feel bad to take advantage of their time...

Sophie

Well you may find out that you will need their help depending on what they say. Check out the Organic Business links on the left side of this page to see if there's any landscaping businesses you can use to ensure they follow organic practices.

I would be happy to help you if this is still a problem.
Paul
www.B-Organic.biz

It doesn't look like the bed can be raised too much because you would be taking the soil over the brick/slab line, and therefore over the weep-holes above your foundation. Mulch will also be constantly spilling onto your sidewalk, too.

I would connect two six inch french drain box inlets with atrium grates on top, connect to 3" corrugated pipe, run under the sidewalk to a pop-up flush emitter in your yard. It's a really simple job for a landscape contractor in your area. You can get all the parts and advice on how to do it yourself at Ewing Irrigation supply.

Hope that helps,
Mitch.