PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum - View Single Post - Spot in Yard Always Wet

gmercoleza · #1 06-15-2005, 05:30 PM

We have lived in this house for just over a year and are new to TX. One corner of our yard, an area about 15 x 7, is in a low spot and therefore inherently always in some state of dampness. Under normal conditions, it would be damp or wet for several days after a rain, although without standing water (just squishy and kind of muddy when you walk in it). With the Texas heat, it could dry out, albeit very slowly. So if it rained again just a few days later, the spot never got a chance to fully dry (although it was actually "bone dry" with cracks in the soil maybe once or twice last summer).

To make matters worse, recently our next door neighbor completely changed his lawn from Bermuda grass to St. Augustine. He did this by laying sod right over the lawn. The result is that his lawn is about 3 inches higher than mine. Since my low spot is even lower now than it originally was, the wetness regularly extends beyond the 15 x 7 area. It now runs in a strip that covers nearly 1/5 of my backyard. To make matters worse, he has started a vigorous 24 x 7 watering schedule. Now the "damp" part of the yard is actually a swamp, with no hope of ever drying out unless he stops watering. At this point there is standing water and a "rotting" smell. What could be causing this smell?

When my kids go out to play on their playset, if they wander in the wrong direction they will be muddy. When I let my dog out, he pretty much needs a bath almost every time, since, if the neighbor's dog is also out, they "pace" with each other along the fence which is in the heart of the wet spot. He's usually covered in mud. It's so bad that our deck is now covered with muddy dog prints. Some days I just give the dog his water bowl and leave him outside because I just don't have the time to fully clean him yet again (don't worry - he has plenty of shade and shelter).

Any suggestions on coping with this situation? I was just at my father-in-law's house in Atlanta, and they had a similar spot in their yard that never dried out. An attractive solution they used was smooth rocks, about the size of golf balls, in a variety of colors. It worked great for them, and I suspect it would work great for my situation, but I fear that the temptation to chuck the rocks through a window would be too great for 3 and 5 year old kids. So the rock solution is pretty much ruled out.

Any other suggestions out there?

Also, any suggestions on how to approach the neighbor? Should I be asking him to tone down on the watering, or just wait to see if he wakes up once his water bill comes? Or should I build up my own lawn with more sod?

Thanks everyone.