Excess rainfall and water in a garden can be a challenge for gardeners and landscapers. If this is in issue in your garden, designing the right draining solution that also makes a lovely garden feature is possible. The ideal solution is to install a natural dry creek bed. This blog post outlines why your garden needs a dry creek bed, particularly if you’re in an area susceptible to heavy rain. We also share our helpful guide to building a naturally appealing dry creek bed that provides adequate drainage, keeping your garden thriving.
Effective Drainage for Your Garden
After a severe downpour, excess rainwater can create puddled areas or eroding slopes in your garden. Creating a natural dry creek bed will be a handy channel, dispersing and diverting excess water and reducing runoff. With the right garden rock supplies and design, your dry creek bed can also feature a rock slope to ensure water flows naturally, and in the right direction. In addition, the drainage will help protect your garden’s soil condition, as it prevents erosion.A Unique Rock Feature in Your Garden
Using decorative landscaping stones, a dry creek bed can also become a beautiful backyard addition. Engaging an experienced landscape rock supplier will help you choose the most suitable stones and rocks to give your garden a unique and natural look.How to Install a Dry Creek bed
- Before you start digging, careful mapping out of the site is vital. A dry creek bed can be large or small, depending on the size of your garden. Generally, a stream is approximately twice as wide as its depth. If you’re planning a dry creek bed that’s 1 metre across, you’ll want it to be around 50-60 centimetres deep. It’s also important to consider where the water flows and if there’s an existing slope in your garden. When planning the landscape of your dry creek bed, make sure the water doesn’t flow into the street or your neighbour’s property.
- Using landscaping paint will help mark the edges of your dry creek bed. It’s best to remove any existing vegetation before you commence digging. It’s now time to grab a backhoe or shovel and start excavating your garden.
- Once you’ve decided on your dry creek bed’s pathway, use landscape fabric to line the bed. You can keep the material firmly in place by staking landscape pins. Landscape fabric will help protect your garden’s soil, providing adequate moisture while preventing weeds from growing in your dry creek bed.
- When covering the bed, apply a thick layer of gravel or coarse sand. By using different sizes and shapes of garden and river rocks, you can now start getting creative in rock landscaping. Spread your stones and rocks down the length of your dry creek bed to depict a stream or river. Laying stones on their side will give a running water effect. By partially burying the larger rocks, you can create a natural look.
- Why not add a personal touch? Natural shrubs, native plants, logs, stepping stones or wooden bridges are all great features to make your dry creek bed an iconic part of your garden.