A Commercial Lawn Care Guide To Proper Drainage
Commercial lawn care professionals know that proper drainage is an important element of protecting your home, its foundation, and your entire property. Did you see standing water in the spring? Did areas in your lawn never seem to dry out? Then you probably have a drainage issue.
Do You Have A Drainage Problem?
Most homes and businesses have gutter downspouts that go straight to the ground, where all the water rolling off the roof collects in one place. This is the most common landscape drainage problem. Simply extending downspouts away from the building so that they carry rainwater at least 10’ away from the structure should solve this problem.
Water pooling up on your lawn after heavy rain indicates that the soil is too compacted for the water to effectively penetrate. This could indicate a need for dethatching, aeration, or both.
Signs of thatch build-up include a lawn that feels spongy or seems to dry out quickly. Small areas can be dethatched with a dethatching rake, which you use in the same manner as a garden rake. Landscape professionals use a dethatching machine, which looks similar to a lawn mower but slices the turf grass vertically rather than horizontally.
When soil is compacted, it is packed too densely, preventing water from penetrating. When the water cannot penetrate the soil, it sits on top, creating swamps and puddles on your lawn.
Aeration involves making holes in the lawn by either pushing a rod into it or extracting a plug of soil. This process breaks up thatch and relieves soil compaction. Aeration service from Landworks improves water, nutrient, and oxygen movement to the root system.
Why Proper Drainage Is Critical
The importance of landscape drainage in commercial lawn care cannot be overstated. Good drainage protects not only your property but also the health and safety of your family. Standing water in your yard, moisture in your basement, and erosion are all serious issues that should be handled immediately for the well-being of both your property and your family.
Standing water in your yard is not only bad for turf but can actually become a public health hazard. Stagnant pools of water allow bacteria and parasite growth as well as mosquito breeding.
Mosquito eggs hatch 24 to 48 eight hours after being laid in water. In 7 to 10 days the larvae metamorphose into their adult forms. Mosquitoes in their adult form can carry West Nile Virus, dog heartworm, and St. Louis Encephalitis.
When it rains, the soil is displaced from your landscaping to other areas of your yard. This is referred to as “soil erosion.” Without proper drainage, over time this displacement can cause issues with soil depth which can cause damage to your landscaping.
Improper landscape drainage can damage the foundation of your home and patio as well as your landscaping. When there is heavy rain, water flows through your yard much faster. Without proper drainage, this fast-moving water can force its way through cracks in your foundation. This causes damage to the foundation of your house as well as water in your basement.
Commercial Lawn Care Solutions For Landscape Drainage
A permanent landscape drainage system may be necessary if the problem persists after dethatching and aerating. The most popular option is a French drain.
A French drain is a trench filled with gravel around a slotted pipe. French drains are ideal for lawns and landscapes, patios and driveways, retaining walls, and around foundations. French drains direct groundwater or surface water away from an area toward the lowest point in the landscape. The water is then collected in the perforated pipe at the base of the drain, and directed toward a more suitable area. French drains collect water over the entire length of the drain instead of one particular spot like surface drains.
Landworks knows landscaping in Shawnee, Lenexa, Olathe, Overland Park, Leawood, Prairie Village, and surrounding areas and will provide whatever services are required to ensure proper landscape drainage. For more information about drainage solutions and commercial lawn care, click here or call (913) 422-9300.