Thanks for the help.
Brad
Drainage Question
Moderators: lucky1, Alchris, Kansas, Wes North Van, Laaz
Drainage Question
I just picked up the new trachy I bought my wife. It is about 8' and I rented a track hoe to dig a very oversize hole. The hole ended up being about 2 feet deeper than the bottom of the roots and I filled the extra depth with 2 wheelbarrow loads of gravel and then 2 loads of really good soil. My question is this: I'm in Portland OR and it rained a ton today after we planted it Saturday. Even with the sump of gravel and soil below the palm I think this storm inundated it for now. How long can it withstand this type of soaking? It will likely only happen a couple times a year but we are both freaked out a bit. We made a trench away from the hole to divert excess water but for now it will all find it's way into the hole since it is clay all around and the hole is filled with nice draining soil. I think the water will eventually drain but we did not time it or anything given the extra depth we gave the palm.
Thanks for the help.
Brad
Thanks for the help.
Brad
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Barrie
Hey Brad,
Trachys aren't really fond of standing water for sure. Will it live most likely will it thrive not likely. I remember reading about a really
old specimen in NC that was planted in really poor draining soil that kept getting worse and worse every year. Keep an eye on it for
sure, and if you notice it going haywire move it to a better spot.
Bill
Trachys aren't really fond of standing water for sure. Will it live most likely will it thrive not likely. I remember reading about a really
old specimen in NC that was planted in really poor draining soil that kept getting worse and worse every year. Keep an eye on it for
sure, and if you notice it going haywire move it to a better spot.
Bill
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lucky1
- Arctic Palm Plantation
- Posts: 11325
- Joined: Sun Feb 18, 2007 7:31 pm
- Location: Vernon BC, Zone 5a or 5b (close to 6A!)
Hi Brad welcome to PN.
Great looking Trachy!
The two feet of gravel you added to the too-deep hole was a good idea, but if the whole area is clay, I'd be concerned.
Especially since you guys get a ton of rain.
Your yard looks flat as a table but is there a slope somewhere?
If so, next year you could plant it on at the crest of even a little hill, and then direct water away from its base by planting it a bit too high (say, 6 inches) and slope the topsoil away.
I'd leave it for this year though.
Barb
Great looking Trachy!
The two feet of gravel you added to the too-deep hole was a good idea, but if the whole area is clay, I'd be concerned.
Especially since you guys get a ton of rain.
Your yard looks flat as a table but is there a slope somewhere?
If so, next year you could plant it on at the crest of even a little hill, and then direct water away from its base by planting it a bit too high (say, 6 inches) and slope the topsoil away.
I'd leave it for this year though.
Barb
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If you drink, don't drive. Don't even putt.
If you drink, don't drive. Don't even putt.
Thanks for the replies. I am thinking of making a VERY deep trench to divert the water. This palm is about 2 feet above the lower part of the yard. I can move the water away pretty well. Today the weather is better and it seems completely drained. Here is a better shot of where the palms are in the yard. It is right behind the sculpture.
Brad
Brad
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TerdalFarm
- Palm Grove
- Posts: 2983
- Joined: Mon Oct 12, 2009 7:48 pm
- Location: Manzanita, OR & Sarasota, FL
- Contact:
Brad,
I love your photos. I'm a Rose City native (born at Emmanuel Hospital, as was my older boy; he is now a student at Reed).
I like the trench idea. I have not used it for my palms; I build up an area for them. But for other areas of my garden with drainage problems, I dig a trench and have it slope down and away from plants I'm worried about. At the deepest part, I put in a plastic box-like device I get at a home-improvement store. Water collects in it. I then use an electric pump to pump water out of that box and as far away as the connected hose can take it. I don't have to leave the pump in place, as it is only a few times/year that we get heavy rains. For you, that would be a few times around now and again in October/November.
From your first picture, perhaps you could dig a deep hole into the near corner and insert 4" diameter drainpipe down 3-4'.
You could run the intake hose of a water pump down that to pump out excess water after heavy rains. The rest of the time you would put a cap on it. When you get really cold weather (think, "December, 2008") you could pour some warm tap water down to keep the roots above freezing.
Any feedback from the more experienced palm growers here?
--Erik
I love your photos. I'm a Rose City native (born at Emmanuel Hospital, as was my older boy; he is now a student at Reed).
I like the trench idea. I have not used it for my palms; I build up an area for them. But for other areas of my garden with drainage problems, I dig a trench and have it slope down and away from plants I'm worried about. At the deepest part, I put in a plastic box-like device I get at a home-improvement store. Water collects in it. I then use an electric pump to pump water out of that box and as far away as the connected hose can take it. I don't have to leave the pump in place, as it is only a few times/year that we get heavy rains. For you, that would be a few times around now and again in October/November.
From your first picture, perhaps you could dig a deep hole into the near corner and insert 4" diameter drainpipe down 3-4'.
You could run the intake hose of a water pump down that to pump out excess water after heavy rains. The rest of the time you would put a cap on it. When you get really cold weather (think, "December, 2008") you could pour some warm tap water down to keep the roots above freezing.
Any feedback from the more experienced palm growers here?
--Erik