If the meadow is damp, this can become a real problem - especially near the house. Moist meadows are often overgrown with moss, which is also a sure indicator of too acidic soil. Regular formation of puddles in the same places over and over again indicates a lack of permeability in the soil. Here's how to fix it.
Why is the meadow wet?
The fact that the meadow is damp is usually due to a lack of permeability in the soil. Heavy loamy or clayey soils in particular tend not to allow water to seep away, but instead to accumulate on the surface. This happens above all in meadows that lie in a depression, because here the water cannot even escape to the sides.
How to dry the meadow - what you have to pay attention to
Of course, you must first of all make sure that you do not drain any protected wet or marshy meadows - this is subject to approval, although the necessary permission is now only rarely granted. These meadow species are rare biotopes and are considered worthy of protection. The situation is different, of course, with the damp meadow in front of your house, which of course you have to drain - otherwise it can happen that the excess moisture ends up in the masonry at some point and does its destructive work.
Lay the drainage
When laying the drainage pipes, make sure that you do not lead them into the depression, but rather run them parallel to the slope. It is also important that the pipes end either in a septic tank, in a stream or in the sewage system. You should also run from top to bottom - i.e. with a gradient - because water is known to only flow downhill, not uphill. And this is how you lay the drainage pipes:
- Make a plan in advance of how the pipes should run. Consult with a professional.
- Stake the course trenches and lift off the overgrown sods with a flat spade.
- Dig the trenches and fill in a layer of gravel at the bottom.
- Now take gutters that have been perforated (and wrapped with fleece) and place them in the ditch.
- Check that the pipes are actually going downhill by pouring some water in and seeing where it goes.
- At the end of the pipes you dig a drainage ditch about two meters deep, which is filled with gravel.
- The ditches with the pipes are also filled with gravel. Only a thin layer of earth comes on top.
tips and tricks
If the meadow is not near the house, you can convert the wet meadow into a real wet meadow biotope with the help of soil improvement and the right plants, thus creating a coveted habitat for many rare plants and animals.