Soil preparation on the territory consists of several stages, one of which is draining the swampy area. Drying or drainage is carried out in order to regulate the water regime in a place that is flooded with water due to passing high groundwater.

In order to dry a wet area of ​​land, in addition to the drainage system, a well is installed to collect water.

There are also cases when the site is located in a lowland, then there is a need for diversion excess water accumulated after floods or heavy rains.

Features of the drainage system

A swamp, as a drainable area suitable for further exploitation, is rarely equipped with drainage ditches. This method can be used if the swamp is located in low-lying or straight areas where it is impossible to lay drainage pipes due to the lack of slope.

Drainage system diagram.

In a marshy, flat area, a canal is dug at the foot of the hill to lower the water level. Drainage can be done independently by digging channels 1-1.5 m deep. To strengthen the walls and prevent them from crumbling, lay cement screed or they are made at an angle of 30° if the work is to be done on clay buds. Channels require regular cleaning to prevent stagnation of water flow.

The solution to carry out looks more aesthetically attractive underground pipes. Modern construction market offers plastic and concrete pipes, which are laid in trenches.

Due to their flexibility, plastic pipes are more popular and often used. The joints of individual elements are not welded, leaving small holes so that water can seep into the ground.

The moisture drainage pipe must have a diameter of at least 8 cm for side outlets, 10 cm for the main outlet.

Side pipes are laid at a frequency of 1-5 m to the main pipe if work is carried out on loamy soil, and 7 m for sandy area, 10-12 m between side pipes.

They connect to the central pipe at an angle of 70°. Such a slope in the area is capable of allowing free flow to the central pipe.

Most optimal size for a trench the width is 0.5 m and the depth is 1 m. When digging a ditch, the top soil is set aside, since it represents fertile layer, which can be used later. After laying the system upper layer poured into place on a slope to ensure the angle of moisture inflow.

Return to contents

The process of constructing a drainage system

Diagram of the drainage system.

Drainage is established by digging a ditch. The slope of the ditch bottom is determined using building level, beacons and slats. Before laying the pipes, the bottom is shaped into a tray by tamping and smoothing. Crumpled fatty clay copes best with this task.

After completing this stage of work, the bottom of the ditch in the area is filled with 5-7 cm of broken brick or gravel. The assembly of the structure from pipes, as well as their laying, is carried out from central pipe. Pottery type pipes are equipped with holes. If you plan to use asbestos-cement pipes, you must independently make cuts about 1/3 of the diameter and 1 cm wide. The width between the cuts is 10-15 cm. Laying pipes on the site is done with the cuts facing upwards. Experts recommend covering the structure with a layer of gravel on top so that the pipe is in the coupling. At the final stage, soil is poured on top, having previously covered the pipe joints to avoid clogging.

If available on site underground system water outflow, pay attention to the depth of soil cultivation during the cultivation process in order to avoid damage to the system and waterlogging of the area.

If there are places on the site where it is impossible to carry out drainage using the method of open ditches or underground drainage with pipes, a brick drainage is constructed. Brick drainage consists of channels with a cross section of 12x12 cm. The bottom of such channels is covered with greasy clay. To do this, a trench up to a meter deep is dug across the site, directed towards the well. Up to half of the trench is filled with brick or gravel and backfilled with soil. As a result of such actions, you get a ditch filled with porous material that allows water to pass through, moving it towards the well.

Excess water in a summer cottage leads to soil washout, a decrease in the yield of garden crops, and deformation of residential and outbuildings. In this case, it is important for everyone who is faced with such a problem to know how to drain the area of ​​water with their own hands.

What influences the choice of dehumidification method

The accumulation of water on a site can occur for many reasons, but the main ones are the following:

• increasing groundwater levels;
• the site is located in lowlands, which contributes to the rapid accumulation of precipitation;
• clayey and loamy soils with low moisture absorption coefficient.

The most problem areas on the site are determined in the off-season, when it falls maximum amount precipitation, – in early spring and late autumn. It is recommended to pump water from the site during the dry period - in summer.

Rapid drainage of land is carried out using several methods. When choosing suitable option To solve the problem, it is necessary to take into account the main factors:

• type and level of soil permeability;
• size of land;
• optimal water level;
• period of soil drainage from groundwater;
• finished buildings on the site that require drainage;
• direction of underground sources;
• presence and type of vegetation.

The most popular methods of draining land on a site are the drainage system, drainage pits and ditches, elements landscape design, moisture-loving shrubs and trees.

Closed and open drainage systems

Modern drainage systems allow you to quickly and effectively get rid of excess liquid on the site. Simple drainage consists of a pipeline and a water receiver. A stream, lake, river, ravine or ditch can be used as a water intake.

The drainage system is equipped from the water intake to land plot maintaining the optimal distance between its main elements. On dense soils with a high clay content, the distance between individual drains should be 8–10 meters, on loose and heaving soils - up to 18 meters.

Open drainage

An open or French drainage system consists of shallow ditches whose bottom is filled with fine gravel and stones. Such drainage is arranged quite simply: a small-depth ditch is dug with wastewater discharged into a drainage well or a deep trench to the level of the sand layer, which is used as a drainage cushion.

A drainage well measuring 1x1 m can have a closed and open design, its bottom is filled with medium-fraction gravel and broken bricks. Such structures do not become clogged, but are filled with soil, which is washed away with water. For this reason, draining this type of well is much more difficult than draining an open drain.

Closed drainage

A technically complex device that will quickly remove excess water and prevent it from stagnating. The arrangement of closed drainage is carried out using pipes made of clay or asbestos cement and laid in a certain order - in a straight line or in a herringbone pattern. Drainage closed type Suitable for areas located on a slight slope, which ensures natural water flow.

Closed drains are often combined with drainage systems that allow water to be removed from the foundation of the house.

Sewage pits and ditches

Many owners choose a fairly simple way to solve the problem of draining areas by digging sewage holes and ditches. The arrangement of a cone-shaped pit is carried out as follows: at the lowest point you need to dig a pit up to 100 cm deep, up to 200 cm wide at the top and 55 cm at the bottom. The drainage system is quite effective, since excess moisture can be drained into drains without the use of additional means.

Arrangement process gutters more labor-intensive, but no less effective. Ditches are dug along the entire perimeter of the territory - the depth and width are 45 cm. The walls are made at an angle of 25 degrees. The bottom is laid out with broken bricks or gravel. The main disadvantage of ditches is their gradual crumbling, so it is worth timely cleaning and strengthening the walls with boards or concrete slabs.

Landscape design elements - streams and ponds

We effectively get rid of excess water on the site by installing artificial ponds and streams. Similar elements of landscape design can be organized in areas located at a slight slope.

It is better to arrange water sources in dark places to avoid algal blooms. Bottom artificial pond laid out with stone or geotextile.

To enhance the effect, moisture-loving vegetation – shrubs, plants, grass – can be planted next to the artificial pond.

Such landscape forms are structurally reminiscent of the French drainage system, since they are arranged according to the same principle.

Moisture-loving plantings - shrubs, trees and grass

To drain the soil, moisture-loving trees, shrubs and grasses that are capable of pumping out excess water are used.

In order for green spaces to remove moisture, you need to know which varieties are recommended to be planted on the site. Such plantings include: willow, birch, maple, alder and poplar.

No less in demand are shrubs: hawthorn, rose hips and bladderwort. In moist soils, hydrangea, serviceberry, spirea, mock orange and Amur lilac develop.

To give the site attractiveness and aesthetics, moisture-loving garden flowers are planted - iris, aquilegia and asters.

Too moist soil is not suitable for growing fruit trees - pears, apples, plums and apricots. Therefore, when choosing trees, it is better to give preference to seedlings with a shallow root system. Trees are planted on hills up to 55 cm high.

To do this, a peg is driven into the soil, the earth around it is dug up to a depth of 25 cm. A prepared seedling is tied to the peg, the roots are sprinkled with earth with the addition of humus. The root collar remains exposed to a height of up to 8 cm above the ground surface.

After planting is completed, the seedling is watered abundantly to get rid of air gaps between the root system and the soil.

Important! Excessively wet soil has high acidity, so when draining it is recommended to additionally liming it. This will improve the quality of the soil for further gardening and household work.

During operation, the condition of the soil on the site is carefully checked, since excess moisture can cause negative impact on horticultural crops, residential and commercial buildings. It is recommended to carry out the soil drainage procedure simultaneously with liming.

Now every landowner knows the answer to the question of how to get rid of water on the site and do it correctly. This will require free time, desire and financial investments.

In our large country, swamps and wetlands occupy significant areas. Ordinary plants, which constantly need oxygen to nourish their underground parts - roots and rhizomes, cannot grow and develop in swampy soils. Standing, motionless water quickly becomes deprived of oxygen, and most plants die. Only those that have managed to adapt to life in the swamp survive - swamp plants.

Meanwhile, in my own way chemical composition swamp soils are extremely fertile. They can produce high yields of a wide variety of agricultural crops. But to do this, you must first drain the swamp. Then barren lands harmful to human health will turn into rich fields and pastures. Fat cornfields will begin to sprout where recently only stunted marsh grasses and low-growing shrubs grew.

In our country there is big job on drainage and development of swamps. Agriculture Socialist countries have already received millions of hectares of new fertile land.
Swamp drainage is now almost entirely mechanized. Soviet scientists and engineers have created many wonderful machines that do all the hard, tedious and monotonous work for people.

How are swamps drained?

First of all, you need to remove it from the soil. excess moisture, i.e. give it a drain. And the water should, of course, flow into the nearest river. Therefore, first of all, it is necessary to deepen and widen the bed of such a river, and in some places straighten it. Here you have to remove the soil mainly from under the water.

Nowadays, soil is removed from the river by floating and land excavators, as well as dredging units.

Floating excavators are used in cases where the width of the river allows dumping of excavated soil onto the shore. This soil thrown out by an excavator is leveled with bulldozers.

Depending on their performance, floating dredgers are used on both large and small rivers. The soil they extract from the bottom of the river, mixed with water - pulp - is pumped through pipes to the shore and spread over the surface of the soil. There is no need for a bulldozer here.

But standing swamp water will not flow into the river on its own even after its channel has been deepened and widened. For drainage, more canals have to be laid across the entire area of ​​the swamp. First they dig the main, i.e. main, canals, then the collector canals. The latter collect water flowing from the swamp through a shallow closed or open drainage network and divert it into the main canal.

An open network of small drainage ditches serves to receive and discharge surface waters into collector canals, as well as to lower the groundwater level in the drained area.

Along with an open network of ditches, a closed network - drainages - is used when draining swamps. They are made of planks, pottery, fascine or mole. Board drainage is made from boards that are knocked together in the form of pipes rectangular section. Pottery consists of pottery, i.e. fired, clay pipes. Fascinous drainage is made from brushwood of various tree species, cleared of leaves and small branches. And finally, the mole channel is a system of underground channels resembling mole tunnels.

Main and collector channels with a depth of 1.5 to 2.5 m are laid by excavators specially adapted for working on swampy soil.

Plow ditchers work to lay an open shallow drainage network of ditches. This is a highly productive machine: in an hour it can dig ditches up to 2 km long and up to 80-100 cm deep.

A trench for laying the drainage is dug using a multi-bucket excavator or a plow ditch digger, then the drainage is lowered into it and covered with earth on top.

To lay mole drainage, mole plows and mole drainage machines have been created. They are driven by a tractor specially equipped for working on swampy soil.

Immediately after laying the canals, their slopes are strengthened with turf or sown with grass to avoid landslides.

But time passes and open channels and the ditches are gradually filled with sand or silt, overgrown with marsh grasses, become shallow, collapse and, as a result, begin to drain water poorly, or even become clogged. They have to be cleaned and repaired periodically.

So, the swamp has been drained. All of it was covered with a network of large and small canals. Standing water that has accumulated in the soil for years flows freely through these channels into the nearest river. But this is only the first part of the work of land reclamation workers - this is the name given to people involved in radically improving the natural conditions of lands with unfavorable conditions. water regime. Now the drained swamp needs to be reclaimed and prepared for sowing crops. To repair and clean ditches and canals, special cleaning machines are used: some for cleaning ditches of a small drainage network, others for cleaning collector and main canals.

The first step is to clear the soil of small bushes, stumps, hummocks and woody debris. You can't do much here with an ax and a shovel - this is a very labor-intensive task.

A brush cutter mounted on a tractor easily cuts bushes and small trees and removes hummocks.

However, it is beneficial to use brush cutters in cases where the swamp is overgrown not only with bushes, but also with small forests. If the bush does not have small forests, it is simply plowed deep into the ground. This work is performed by a unit for plowing bushes. Such a hydraulically controlled unit, driven by a tractor, consists of two parts: a hollow drum and a ski with a knife are hung in front of the tractor, and a plow body is hung behind it. The drum, rotating, tilts the bush forward and presses it to the soil surface; a knife cuts a layer with rhizomes in vertical plane, and the plow body wraps the layer and plows the bushes to a depth of 20 to 50 cm.

Uprooting stumps and removing woody debris is one of the most difficult jobs in the process of developing drained swamps. Stumps are uprooted by the direct pull of a tractor with hooks on chains or cables, or with a rooter, or with a powerful bulldozer that turns out huge stumps, or with a uprooter-collector.

After clearing the drained area of ​​bushes, stumps, hummocks and woody debris, it begins to be prepared for agricultural use. It includes three processes: plowing, cutting and rolling.

Plowing peat soils drained swamp should be deep, with complete coverage of surface vegetation. For this purpose, special swamp plows with a wide grip are used, which plow the ground to a depth of 50 cm, while wrapping the layer and embedding all vegetation deep into the soil.

The layer of earth wrapped by the plow must then be loosened to the greatest possible depth so that oxygen can freely penetrate into the soil. Loosen the layer disc harrows or special milling machines.

Then the surface of the drained swamp is rolled - leveled with special swamp loading rollers.

If you find an error, please highlight a piece of text and click Ctrl+Enter.

Setting up a garden in a wetland is a troublesome task. It is clear that without drainage you cannot arrange it. Such areas occur on high sphagnum moss and lowland grass-sedge bogs, as well as on clay.

The nature of the soil in the wetland

Raised bogs are peat with high acidity. When making sufficient quantity compost and meadow soil, as well as after liming, the soil becomes fertile over time.

Lowland peat is located at a depth of at least half a meter. It is loose and fertile, if it dries out it is a fire hazard, and if excess humidity is compressed and does not allow plants to breathe. Before planting, you need to add sand and turf soil to it. The hardest thing is with clay. Close groundwater, heavy and cold soil will require great expense and physical effort. Clay does not allow plants to develop normally; it freezes quickly and thaws slowly. And only deposit large quantity sand, peat, meadow soil and compost or humus will make such an area suitable for a garden.

Drainage for wetlands

It is necessary to decide in advance on the style of the future garden (perhaps it will be), with its layout. Everything must be removed from the site unnecessary trees and bushes. Depending on the degree of swampiness of the site, plantings will have to be placed in flower beds or ridges.

The drainage system for drainage in a wetland must be positioned so that the water flows to its lowest part. It may consist of hidden, backfill and open ditches for draining water and a drainage well. Open ditches are often made along the boundaries of the site. It is somewhat more difficult to arrange backfill. Geotextiles are laid at the bottom of the ditches, and expanded clay, gravel, and broken bricks are poured on top. In our opinion, backfill ditches are more convenient to use, do not require mowing and cleaning, and are safer for children.

Hidden (with pipe laying) drainage ditches very convenient to use under paths. Only their covering should not be laid on the mortar (in the spring this cement screed will tear anyway), it is better - by dry laying on sand. Wood cuts will serve as an excellent covering. Drainage well located at the very bottom of the site. It can be replaced with a reservoir, the depth of which is determined depending on the level of incoming water on the site. Peat has an insidious property - it is a heat insulator. The buds are already blooming on the trees and shrubs, but the roots have not yet thawed, and the plant is dying from the cold. Peat, depending on the degree of humidity, swells and contracts, and therefore the soil quickly becomes compacted and overgrown with weeds. Clay soils are structureless and cold. Plants on them freeze out more often.

Plants for Wetlands

In the wettest areas without drainage, cranberries and lingonberries will thrive. You will be pleased with the lawn of meadow grasses, surrounded by a mixborder of moisture-loving plants(, Volzhanka, Buzulnik, black cohosh, Rogersia, Brunnera, marsh and Siberian, cuff, loosestrife). And how the weeping willow will decorate the garden! Such a garden is a great place for beautiful hydrangeas. Spiraea and rhododendrons planted in drained areas will not be superfluous, just like chokeberry, thuja, and brilliant cotoneaster. The dicenters will keep them company. Don't forget about ferns and...

If the drainage system is arranged correctly, good results can be achieved.

And framed by hidden drainage ditches and paths, your mixborders will look no worse than those in the most luxurious gardens in Europe. A vegetable garden of high, neat beds with edges made of impregnated protective agent boards will be the decoration and pride of your garden. In the wetland, God himself commands.

You can see how to build a drainage system on your site in the following video.

Scheme of planting plants in a pond

It is better when plants in a pond occupy all three tiers: underwater, free-floating and above-water.

This planting scheme is used not only for beauty, but also to saturate the water with oxygen. In a small area of ​​6-7 sq. m, it is enough to plant 10-15 oxygenating plants (their flowers, leaves, stems are usually under water, some look out) and five free-floating ones. In a medium-sized reservoir (15 sq. m.) there can be three times more plants, and in a large one (50 sq. m. or more) - six times. It should also be remembered that overcrowding with plants leads to rapid growth. So what should you plant in a pond?

Common marsh calamus (Acorus calamus) from the Araceae family. A perennial with a thick creeping rhizome up to 3 m long. The stem is 80-125 cm high. The leaves are 60-120 cm long and have a spicy aroma. Flowers bloom in May-July. Very popular decorative form Variegatus (white-variegated leaves).

Calamus is immersed in water to a depth of 0.3-0.5 m or in a swampy area, preferably in containers (for the winter, the leaves are cut off, leaving stems 10 cm long above the surface of the water). With intensive growth it can displace other plant species.

Swamp iris (Iris pseudacorus) from the Iris family. The height of the peduncles is up to 90 cm, and the length of the leaves is up to 120 cm, and they are decorative throughout the season. Flowers bloom from late May to July. Plant the plant in shallow water. As the bush grows, control is needed - divide or cut off the excess. Many people plant it in a container and annually remove the shoots that go to the sides, but it is easier to put the plant in water and press it with stones. At the end of summer, all leaves are cut off. There is a variegated form of iris. It is more capricious to grow; in addition, the leaves turn green as they age.

Umbrella susak (Butomus umbellatus) from the Susak family. Its height can be 40-150 cm. Flowers bloom in June-July. A very elegant plant for decorating ponds, capable of emphasizing the strict regular style compositions. Can be planted in a container to a depth of 10 cm to 1 m). Prefers clay soil. It grows quickly, so it is divided every 2-3 years.

Hybrid water lily (Nymphaea) - perennial herbaceous plant family Nymphaeaceae. Flowers that bloom in June-September, with a diameter of 10-12 cm or more, come in a wide variety of colors: white, pink, yellow, crimson. Berry-like fruits ripen on next year. The water lily gives the pond a touching nostalgic charm.

There are varieties for planting at a depth of 50 cm and deeper, as well as for shallow water (from 20 cm), and this must be taken into account when purchasing a plant. It is preferable to plant in a thick layer of organic silt or in a container with fertile, heavy clay soil.

Features of planting water lilies in a pond

For cultivation, special mesh baskets are used, the bottom and walls of which are lined with water-permeable fabric that prevents the soil from being washed out. They use purchased soil mixture, but you can prepare it yourself. To do this, the soil removed during the construction of the reservoir is mixed with peat (2:1). The basket for planting is filled with a mixture of 23, the plant is planted, sprinkled with the same mixture and filled to the top with gravel or small stones (they will not allow an unrooted plant to float up). Then they are very slowly immersed in water so that the soil gradually gets wet without floating. After this, the basket is placed at the desired depth.

At one time, swampy areas caused genuine fear in people, becoming the object of many legends and myths. But today everything is different. Now we consciously create decorative swamps on our plots, because this is the only way to grow charming representatives of swamp flora.

We are offering to you simple instructions on creating a decorative swamp and caring for it.

What is an ornamental swamp?

A swamp is a piece of land where the soil is waterlogged for some reason. In conditions where most of the minerals are washed out of the soil, not all plants are able to survive. Due to the development of a whole spectrum of mosses, sedges, cattails, reeds and other bog plants, the soil environment is within the pH range of 4.5-6 - it has a pronounced acidic character.

Do not confuse a wetland with a swamp. In the first case, the mirror of the reservoir is clearly visible, and the peat is either absent or its thickness is less than 30 cm.

In nature, swamps are formed mainly as follows:

• the existing reservoir is gradually overgrown with marsh plants;
• a separate area becomes swamped artificially or for natural reasons.

Each of the above principles can be used as an approach when making a decorative swamp.

Approaches to constructing a swamp at a summer cottage

Despite the stagnant nature of the water that saturates the swampy soil, it should slowly decrease into the underlying layers. This compensates for the influx of liquid during precipitation and irrigation. For this reason, the construction of a swamp is different from the construction of any other.

If on your site sandy soil, then it is best to refuse to create a decorative swamp, because in this case, the water will drain too quickly into the lower layers of the soil.

In the figure above we show some options for constructing a decorative swamp:

1. if there is a wetland. This is the simplest option, which involves improving the designated area with plants, as well as maintaining an increased moisture content in the soil through periodic watering;
2. if there is a pond. In this case, the swamps serve as an intermediate transitional link, smoothing the coastline. The main difficulty lies in the design of the line connecting the reservoir and the site with waterlogged soil. Usually it is hidden with the help of plants or small architectural forms, for example, decorative bridges;
3. if there is a stream. Artificially created floodplains look appropriate next to streams. As in the previous case, an area with waterlogged soil, planted with marsh plants, makes the man-made hydraulic structure more natural.

In the second and third cases, approaches to arranging a wetland site come down to next works (rice. 2):

• Decide on the location and area. The specific conditions created in a swampy place can cause the active development of insects and reptiles. Therefore, choose a secluded place away from home. When planning the size of the reservoir, keep in mind that even a small swamp requires serious care.
• Remove the layer of turf. You won't need it for further work, so you can use it to make compost.
• Dig a hole 50 cm deep. During the excavation process, preserve the fertile soil layer. It will be needed for backfilling.
• Place a drainage layer on the bottom. This could be gravel, crushed stone, broken brick. The main thing is that it ensures the distribution of liquid under the entire spot of the structure.
• Cover the drainage with sand. To prevent the waterproofing film from tearing, cover the sharp edges of the drainage layer material with sand. Try to compact it.
• Waterproof the pit. Line its bottom and walls with a special pond film. Calculate its size in such a way that there is a small margin (about 30 cm) left for laying on the surface around the perimeter of the pit. Press down the edges with stones.
• Make holes in the film. Water should not stagnate in an artificial swamp. Therefore, make one hole with a diameter of approximately 1 cm in the bottom for each square meter.
• Install a water level control device. Place a piece of pipe (PVC, asbestos, metal) vertically on a soft, waterproof substrate, and place a rod (stick, lath, etc.) inside it. The pipe, like a communicating vessel, will fill with water as the soil moisture increases.
• Fill the bottom with expanded clay. It will serve as a kind of filter and prevent clogging of the holes in the film. In addition, expanded clay has good hygroscopic properties and will retain water, regulating the balance.
• Fill the hole with soil. To do this, use a mixture of fertile soil and peat in a ratio of 1:2.
• Plant the plants. This is described in more detail below.

Which plants to choose

We have come close to a question for which several square meters the dacha plot is being turned into a swamp. This is done primarily with the aim of creating specific conditions for the growth of beautiful plants.

The following plants would look appropriate along the banks of a decorative swamp:

• Willow. You can plant white or brittle willow, which will provide excellent shade for other marsh plants. They are undemanding to the composition of the soil, but during dry periods they need abundant watering.
• Deren. All types of turf are suitable for planting. Like willow, this plant is moisture-loving and does not require special care. Seedlings with a well-developed root system are planted in the spring.
• Elder. Common and Canadian elderberries fit perfectly into the composition. They grow on any type of soil and tolerate drought well. For planting, it is best to purchase two-year-old seedlings.

To avoid damage to the waterproofing of the swamp by growing roots, trees and shrubs are planted at a distance of 1-2 m from the coastline. An option is possible when an additional layer of geotextile is laid under the film.

Plant a little closer to the swamp:

• Heather. It has excellent decorative qualities all season long. At the same time, it is quite demanding in terms of care. It is planted in moist peaty soil to a depth of 30 cm. Every year in the spring it must be fed mineral fertilizers for heathers (according to the instructions), spray with water during dry seasons, constantly monitor soil moisture (heather does not tolerate drought well).
• cotoneaster. Creeping varieties of cotoneaster, which will reveal their decorative qualities in full in the fall, look appropriate. Unpretentious, seedlings are planted to a depth of 50 cm, after which they are immediately mulched. Additional watering is carried out only during dry periods.
• Juniper. Perfectly harmonizes with the environment dwarf varieties juniper. The plant does not require special care. Planted to a depth of about 70 cm.
• Swimsuit. A herbaceous plant that is perfect for decorating a coastal area. Seeds are sown to a depth of 10 cm. Requires periodic weeding, loosening and watering.
• Swamp iris. Perennial herbaceous plant with beautiful flowers, which looks appropriate on the shore of a reservoir. Prefers fertile soil and does not really like to grow in the shade. Seeds are sown to a depth of 10 cm in fertilized soil. Needs constant care: weeding, loosening the soil, watering and fertilizing.

If you don't know how to decorate your swamp, just visit the nearest swamp and take a look ready-made solutions from nature. Here you can dig up individual specimens to plant them on your site.

The following will grow directly in moist soil:

• Rogoz. Many people still confuse it with reeds. It has recognizable brown spike-shaped inflorescences. Looks good along the edges of a marshy area. It is better to plant in containers, because... Cattail grows quickly.
• Sedge. A peat-forming herbaceous plant that grows quickly in waterlogged soil. Propagated by dividing the bush, planted to a depth of 20 cm. Does not require special care, but requires growth control.
• Reed. A plant that no large ornamental swamp can do without. Propagated by dividing the bush, planted to a depth of 30 cm in autumn or spring. It grows quickly, so its growth has to be controlled.
• Astilbe. A beautiful flowering herbaceous plant. Undemanding in care, moisture-loving. Needs periodic feeding. Propagated by dividing the rhizome and bush, planted in late spring to a depth of 30 cm.
• Ledum. An evergreen, moisture-loving shrub that prefers places with medium light. Planted in a mixture of peat, acidic soil and sand to a depth of 20 cm.

This is far from full list plants that can decorate your site. Don't forget that many of them do not tolerate strong light, so they are placed in the shade of taller marsh plants. Build the composition as follows: plant taller plants with powerful foliage along the edges, plant lower ones closer to the center, etc. - to the wetland. Examples the right combination various representatives of aquatic flora are considered in.

Caring for decorative swamp

Only in natural conditions the swamp easily preserves all the diversity of aquatic flora. A decorative swamp of any size requires special attention. It’s not for nothing that experts call it one of the most complex elements of landscape design. Here is a list of the main operations that will have to be performed periodically when caring for a decorative swamp:

• Watering. Maintaining water balance is the most important condition for the development of marsh flora. Control the water level using a pipe that reaches the bottom of the swamp and a rod that is placed in it. Water should saturate the soil, but not form a mirror on its surface. The frequency of watering depends on climatic conditions and the location of the swamp.
• Weeding. Despite the fact that swampy soil is depleted in minerals, it can serve as an excellent environment for moisture-loving weeds. To prevent them from choking out authentic bog plants, remove them periodically.
• Top dressing. The main task is to maintain soil acidity. Use acidic fertilizers for these purposes, such as ammonium chloride and ammonium sulfate. Monitor acidity using a litmus indicator or an electronic pH meter, ensuring that the pH value is between 4.5-5.5.
• Thinning. In nature, in wetlands, there is constant competitive fight between different aquatic plants. To prevent one of the plants from suppressing all the others, you will have to act as a regulator. Remove some of those plants that you think are suppressing their neighbors.

Other decorative elements

When trying to decorate a decorative swamp using small architectural forms, be careful. Such reservoirs look advantageous only with a minimalist approach, when a limited number of objects are used as decorative elements. For example, a small wooden bridge spanning the border of a reservoir and the adjacent swamp would look good. In this case, the bridge design will disguise the most difficult part of the formation of such a hydraulic hybrid - the line of their division.

Moss-covered snags of original shape look good on a swampy area. Several large stones can be placed along the perimeter of the decorative swamp.

To install various lighting fixtures you need to be selective. We recommend using them only in cases where they are needed from a practical point of view. The paths laid out next to such a body of water look good natural stone. Terrace structures would also be appropriate.

If you are not afraid of difficulties and are full of the desire to turn part of your site into a swamp, we suggest that you additionally familiarize yourself with some.