Garden Drainage Solutions for Scotland's Wet Weather

Why Scottish Gardens Flood

Most Central Belt gardens sit on clay subsoil with little natural drainage. Combine that with our annual rainfall and you get waterlogged lawns, soggy patios and structural moisture problems.

Diagnosing the Problem

Pool standing for >24 hours after rain = compacted clay. Pool through summer = a high water table or buried clay layer. Different problems, different solutions.

Solutions

• Lawn aeration: hollow-tine aeration with sand top-dressing solves surface compaction.
• French drains: perforated pipe in gravel-filled trench, discharging to a soakaway or surface water drain.
• Soakaway: a gravel-filled pit (or modular crate) that disperses water into surrounding soil.
• Channel drains: linear gratings at the edges of patios and driveways.
• Land drains: for larger sites, a herringbone of pipes across the lawn.

Costs

Soakaways from £600. French drains from £80/linear metre. Full system £1,500–£4,500.