Parker said:
I’m guessing there’s a river or stream behind your garden
Yes there is a river
Parker said:
I’m guessing there’s a river or stream behind your garden
Yes there is a river
Maybe it’s time to build a homemade hydroelectric scheme like this guy
Be careful while digging There’s likely a high voltage electricity cable running along the pole and probably through your garden You definitely don’t want to hit that with a shovel or mini digger
Haru said:
Be careful while digging There’s likely a high voltage electricity cable running along the pole and probably through your garden You definitely don’t want to hit that with a shovel or mini digger
Haha I’ll be careful When they put the wire underground, they asked me to fill the ditch myself I told them there’s no way I’m going near a live high voltage wire
Zenith said:
Build a big raft with a roof so you can enjoy your garden while floating on the water You’ll need a floating bridge to get to it
You could make some money by offering wild swimming
I’m so glad you mentioned your chickens and ducks are fine My heart sank when I saw the top of the coops peeking out from all that water
Harlow said:
I’m so glad you mentioned your chickens and ducks are fine My heart sank when I saw the top of the coops peeking out from all that water
Haha yeah they are all okay I checked it out and it’s still flooded so the ducks will probably enjoy it again tomorrow The coops are kind of floating in that picture
@Oakley
Where are they all sleeping tonight Did the coops dry out enough I’m sure the ducks felt like it was their birthday with the lake suddenly appearing in the garden I hope it doesn’t stay waterlogged for too long It looks like a real hassle I hope everything works out
@Harlow
Yeah two of the coops dried out just enough but I’ll need to figure something else since they won’t last like this I found some fresh hay to use because the bedding was soaked Haha the ducks were super happy about it
The third coop had a broody hen who is currently asleep in the bathroom I seriously thought I had lost her and the eggs went to grab a cat carrier to move her into the house and by the time I got back the coop was just starting to float The water rose about half a meter in just a few minutes It was like a flash flood
@Oakley
Wow that sounds really scary I would never expect the water to rise that fast Glad you got her to safety just in time I know how grumpy a broody hen can be when you try to move her
I’m not an expert but maybe try planting some water loving plants on the edges That might help a bit even though it won’t do much with the extreme weather we have These willows grow fast and love water Ferns are generally tough too Hydrangeas did really well in my childhood garden which was swampy and they’re colorful Maybe try some rice if the rain keeps up
At least your ducks are having fun
You should definitely look into damp loving plants Calla aethiopicas would thrive assuming your area doesn’t go below -5 degrees
Others have mentioned creating a flood defense wall or similar It looks like your house is raised above the flooded area so you probably don’t need a flood wall though your insurance company might have brought it up But maybe consider a two-tier garden with a lower area for wildlife or just low-maintenance to keep the rest nice It doesn’t have to be a wall it can also be a slope
I believe if you had established grass or another ground cover it would have recovered fine by now I’d recommend staying off it for the time being The ground is warm enough for grass to grow again
I’m glad your hens and ducks are okay
@Kip
If you’re building anything near a river, make sure you get a permit from the environment agency I believe the land only needs to be flooded for a while for grass to stay alive, so your grass might bounce back If it’s recently built, the ground could be really compact and that won’t help either
@Keaton
It’s worth checking with the Environment Agency but if it’s not directly in the channel and there’s no real flood defense structure, I would be surprised if it requires a permit If you have a reference for that, I’ll take your word for it I agree about compacted ground too
Fir trees drink a lot so they could be helpful
How about a walled garden that can contain the flood
Congrats on your new pond
Shan said:
Congrats on your new pond
It’s looking like that so thank you
Check out Monty Don’s garden on Gardeners World He talks about floods happening to his land in his books and on social media