April 14, 2025

The opportunity to design your landscape exactly as you want it for your family is a privilege. When you “inherit” a landscape design from the previous owners of your home, you can feel boxed into their choices and often find yourself working around choices you may not have made for yourself. However, landscape design requires precise planning. You want the space to be aesthetically pleasing but also functional and practical. To have a landscape design that balances these factors, you must focus on proper drainage. Having proper drainage is critical to the health of your lawn. If you ignore drainage when designing your landscaping, you can quickly find yourself fighting soggy spots, water damage, excessive insects, and even mold and mildew growth. By planning your landscape design carefully, you can not only avoid these headaches but can use the flow of water to your advantage to create a sustainable and beautiful property.

Beautifully landscaped backyard with colorful trees and proper drainage.

The Role of Drainage in Landscape Design

When you are considering drainage during your landscape design, there should be three things you are focusing on.

  • Preventing Water Damage

Water damage is one of the biggest headaches homeowners face, so anything that can be done at the planning stage to avoid it is essential. Poor drainage can result in soil erosion, over-saturation of plants, nutrients leaching from the soil, excessive weed growth, and, most critically, damage to hardscaping and even the foundation of your home. Allowing water to pool around structures can cause cracks, sinking, and foundational shifting. Many homeowners overlook the extent of the damage until it has gotten so bad that they see water seeping into their basements or a hardscape sinking or crumbling at the base. Designing your landscaping to keep water away from these areas is crucial.

  • Soil Health

When excess water sits on your soil, it leaches nutrients from the soil. These nutrients, including nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, are necessary for the health of your plants. When your lawn is over-saturated, you will notice the health of the grass declining. Weeds will thrive, while the grass can become discolored and patchy. Excess water can also harm the makeup of your soil, either by eroding the topsoil that protects your roots or compacting the soil and making it difficult to work with.

  • Plant Health

Soil health is directly related to plant health. You need healthy soil to get healthy plants. However, excess water can cause other issues with your plants. Weeds will thrive in soggy conditions, choking out and taking nutrients from the plants you want. Excess water is also one of the leading causes of root rot.

While these are the most important reasons to focus on proper drainage during design, addressing drainage concerns at this stage can also make your property healthier. Insects, mold, and mildew all thrive in soggy areas, and all can be detrimental to your family’s health.

Benefits of Proper Drainage

While proper drainage consideration is important for avoiding problems, it has benefits that make it a valuable piece of the landscape design process. Yards with good drainage often have an enhanced aesthetic appeal, making them more visually attractive, increasing property value, and making them easier to maintain. Plants can grow and bloom without fighting excess weeds or needing to overcome nutrient-poor soil, allowing them to produce lush foliage, vibrant flowers, and strong root systems that can withstand the climate.

In addition to the aesthetic value good drainage enhances, there are environmental benefits as well. Having proper drainage reduces water waste and promotes more sustainable gardening practices.

Implementing Effective Drainage Solutions

Implementing effective drainage solutions should be a continuous discussion during landscape design. Before the design process even begins, have a drainage expert out to do a site assessment. A drainage contractor can look at the property to mark areas with potential drainage issues. Once you know where these issues are most likely, you can begin to incorporate some design techniques. This includes grading the property to direct water flow and using swales to encourage water to flow away from the foundation. Installing drainage systems, such as French drains, dry creek beds, and retaining walls, is also an excellent idea at this stage. Many homeowners will choose to incorporate rain gardens into their design, and this is the perfect time to determine their location and work with a landscape designer to create an area in your yard that is both functional and beautiful.

While landscape design is certainly something you can be involved with, having a drainage expert working with you can be extremely valuable. Not only will you get the best solutions implemented from the start, but you can also be properly instructed on how to monitor and maintain your drainage systems to make sure they stay effective in directing water away from where it can cause damage.

If you prioritize drainage during landscape design, you can prevent many problems that will cause damage over time. The Twin Oaks Landscape team is gifted at landscape design and has a strong focus on drainage solutions. When you are ready to begin designing your ideal landscape, contact Twin Oaks Landscape to ensure that you are creating a property that is not only beautiful but healthy as well.