That time my French drain flooded the garden bed instead of saving it

I was digging a trench along the back fence in Austin last spring and hit a massive rock shelf 2 feet down that I didn't expect. The water backed up overnight and turned my new raised bed into a swamp, killing all 8 tomato plants I just put in. Anyone else run into a hidden obstacle that wrecked your drainage plan?

3 comments

3 Comments

robins837d ago

That time my French drain flooded the garden bed instead of saving it" really hit home. I hit a massive old tree root doing the same thing last spring and my trench just turned into a little pond that killed my peppers. Guess we both learned that digging a trench doesn't mean water will follow the plan.

rowan9696d ago

Did you ever go back and figure out where the water actually wanted to go before you started digging? That's the part I keep missing myself. I always assume the path of least resistance will be obvious, but then I find a rock or a root and suddenly my careful plan means nothing. Water has a way of finding its own way no matter what we try to do on top.

hall.joel6d ago

@robins83 Exactly the same thing happened to me with a buried pipe last fall.