4 Ways US Designers Created Water Run-Off and Drainage With Style
See how four US designers made the most of tricky site conditions to manage water run-off, catch rainwater and more
Lauren Dunec Hoang
26 August 2020
Houzz Editor; landscape designer and former garden editor for Sunset Magazine and in-house designer for Sunset's Editorial Test Garden. Her garden designs have been featured in the Sunset Western Garden Book of Landscaping, Sunset Western Garden Book of Easy-Care Plantings (cover), Inhabitat, and POPSUGAR.
Houzz Editor; landscape designer and former garden editor for Sunset Magazine and... More
The right balance of water is crucial for our gardens. Too much can turn soils boggy and seep into building foundations. Too little and plants are parched. The following four gardens in homes across the USA demonstrate how the designers dealt with drainage in ways that keep the gardens healthy, prevent structures from being damaged and put rainwater to use rather than sending it downstream through storm drains. Take a look and see if any of these design takeaways – such as choosing permeable materials for patios or installing a rainwater tank – could help you manage water in your landscape.
1. A terraced landscape manages run-off and erosion
Designer: Glenn Nardelli and Mikiel Deguara of Pistils Landscape Design + Build; Anita van Asperdt and Catherine Davis of LandCurrent Landscape Architects
Location: Portland, USA
Size: Approximately 4,000 square metres (one acre)
This property had more challenging existing conditions than your typical yard. Not only does the region in the USA’s Pacific Northwest receive heavy seasonal rainfall, the house itself is perched on a hillside with a 15-metre vertical drop down to the Willamette River.
Designer: Glenn Nardelli and Mikiel Deguara of Pistils Landscape Design + Build; Anita van Asperdt and Catherine Davis of LandCurrent Landscape Architects
Location: Portland, USA
Size: Approximately 4,000 square metres (one acre)
This property had more challenging existing conditions than your typical yard. Not only does the region in the USA’s Pacific Northwest receive heavy seasonal rainfall, the house itself is perched on a hillside with a 15-metre vertical drop down to the Willamette River.
To help control slope erosion and water run-off, the design team installed a vast serpentine basalt retaining wall system and stairway running from the home’s back steps down to the river. Crushed rock on the soil side of each retaining wall’s curve helps absorb water, as do sections of gravel on the pathway.
Need creative ideas to manage drainage and run-off? Find a landscape architect or designer near you on Houzz for customised solutions
Need creative ideas to manage drainage and run-off? Find a landscape architect or designer near you on Houzz for customised solutions
Other areas of the garden offer smart ideas for dealing with drainage that are more replicable for those of us who don’t live on a riverside drop.
In the front entry, a walkway of concrete slabs appears to float over beds that function as rain gardens, which collect water and allow it to soak back into the ground. The beds are designed as water-moving swales or low tracts of land, amended with quick-draining soil and crushed rocks and planted with moisture-loving sedges, rushes, camas and irises.
The swales collect, slow down and drain rainwater as it flows down the slope above the home. Using gravel for the driveway, rather than poured concrete, also helps rainwater to drain on-site.
In the front entry, a walkway of concrete slabs appears to float over beds that function as rain gardens, which collect water and allow it to soak back into the ground. The beds are designed as water-moving swales or low tracts of land, amended with quick-draining soil and crushed rocks and planted with moisture-loving sedges, rushes, camas and irises.
The swales collect, slow down and drain rainwater as it flows down the slope above the home. Using gravel for the driveway, rather than poured concrete, also helps rainwater to drain on-site.
2. A naturalistic garden efficiently drains water
Designer: José Roberto Corea and Jeff Fletcher of Austin Outdoor Design
Location: Austin, USA
Size: Approximately 1,000 square metres (one-quarter of an acre)
To manage run-off, any new landscapes installed in Austin, Texas, have to comply with citywide restrictions on how much of the ground can be covered with a permeable surface (one that’s able to drain water) versus an impermeable one (which creates run-off). This is true for many cities, but in Austin the restrictions are particularly strict, requiring in some instances that more than half of the property’s square metreage be permeable.
Faced with these design parameters, designers José Roberto Corea and Jeff Fletcher came up with an Asian-inspired plan for their client’s garden that used a mix of mostly permeable materials centred around a naturalistic human-made creek.
Designer: José Roberto Corea and Jeff Fletcher of Austin Outdoor Design
Location: Austin, USA
Size: Approximately 1,000 square metres (one-quarter of an acre)
To manage run-off, any new landscapes installed in Austin, Texas, have to comply with citywide restrictions on how much of the ground can be covered with a permeable surface (one that’s able to drain water) versus an impermeable one (which creates run-off). This is true for many cities, but in Austin the restrictions are particularly strict, requiring in some instances that more than half of the property’s square metreage be permeable.
Faced with these design parameters, designers José Roberto Corea and Jeff Fletcher came up with an Asian-inspired plan for their client’s garden that used a mix of mostly permeable materials centred around a naturalistic human-made creek.
Gravel covers most of the backyard, with slim areas for decking and a walkway around the swimming pool (shown in the background). This makes almost all of the backyard able to absorb rainwater and complies with the city’s permeability requirements. Planted bamboo and low-water grasses add lushness to areas that aren’t covered in gravel or part of the river rock-edged water feature.
Tip: For those needing a more solid ground surface than loose gravel, stabilised decomposed granite, pavers with gravel joints and porous concrete all provide stability while also draining run-off.
Tip: For those needing a more solid ground surface than loose gravel, stabilised decomposed granite, pavers with gravel joints and porous concrete all provide stability while also draining run-off.
In what is otherwise a fairly arid garden, the creek adds an element of life and movement and invites neighbourhood birds to stop by for a drink. The water recirculates between an upper and lower pond (pumped back up underground), so the only water lost is through evaporation.
3. A clever patio design helps a sunken seating area
Designer: Micah Rogers of Boyce Design and Contracting
Location: Atlanta, USA
Size: 137 square metres of outdoor space and a 51-square-metre patio
What was formerly a damp, sloped backyard received a major upgrade thanks to a smart regrading plan and a stylish new patio design by landscape architect Micah Rogers.
Designer: Micah Rogers of Boyce Design and Contracting
Location: Atlanta, USA
Size: 137 square metres of outdoor space and a 51-square-metre patio
What was formerly a damp, sloped backyard received a major upgrade thanks to a smart regrading plan and a stylish new patio design by landscape architect Micah Rogers.
Before: The slope of the original yard presented a major water issue. “The existing poorly designed drainage pattern resulted in water leaking into the basement,” says Rogers.
After: To help reroute water away from the home, the team excavated the lower level of the garden and added a retaining wall to help control the flow of water.
The patio, made of concrete slabs with wide gaps between them, sits on a 30-centimetre-deep gravel base set over buried perforated pipes. This design allows rainwater run-off to be collected and diverted, via the pipe, into the garden. Bordering the patio, the design team planted a row of ‘Green Giant’ arborvitae (Thuja ‘Green Giant’), which benefit from the deep watering.
Browse more beautiful patios for inspiration
The patio, made of concrete slabs with wide gaps between them, sits on a 30-centimetre-deep gravel base set over buried perforated pipes. This design allows rainwater run-off to be collected and diverted, via the pipe, into the garden. Bordering the patio, the design team planted a row of ‘Green Giant’ arborvitae (Thuja ‘Green Giant’), which benefit from the deep watering.
Browse more beautiful patios for inspiration
4. A sustainably minded garden harvests rainwater
Designer: Princeton Design Collaborative
Location: New Jersey, USA
Size: 237 square metres of outdoor space
This backyard’s homeowners were looking to make their garden more practical and more sustainable when they contacted Princeton Design Collaborative. They were also dealing with a challenging triangular lot that left odd-sized spaces to fit design features such as patios or raised beds.
Designer: Princeton Design Collaborative
Location: New Jersey, USA
Size: 237 square metres of outdoor space
This backyard’s homeowners were looking to make their garden more practical and more sustainable when they contacted Princeton Design Collaborative. They were also dealing with a challenging triangular lot that left odd-sized spaces to fit design features such as patios or raised beds.
The design team came up with a plan that positioned a new outdoor dining patio in the widest section of the triangle, beds for growing vegetables along the side of the house and room for a compost pile, a garden storage shed and a small area of lawn.
A newly installed 1,620-litre rainwater tank catches run-off from the roof, providing enough water to irrigate all landscaped beds, minus the lawn. You can see the downpipe running from the gutter to the rainwater tank here (the tank is hidden behind a cedar screen).
A newly installed 1,620-litre rainwater tank catches run-off from the roof, providing enough water to irrigate all landscaped beds, minus the lawn. You can see the downpipe running from the gutter to the rainwater tank here (the tank is hidden behind a cedar screen).
A view looking back toward the seating area shows the size of the rainwater tank. The lawn occupies the lowest point in the backyard, where it will naturally absorb any excess water from the patio. Plantings include ‘Standing Ovation’ little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium ‘Standing Ovation’) and Red Drift roses (Rosa ‘Meigalpio’).
Your turn
Could any of these ideas work in your own garden? Tell us in the Comments below. And remember to like this story if you found it helpful, save the images and join the conversation.
More
Want more outdoor inspiration? Look no further than this Before & After: A Curvy UK Garden Design That’s Accessible to All
Your turn
Could any of these ideas work in your own garden? Tell us in the Comments below. And remember to like this story if you found it helpful, save the images and join the conversation.
More
Want more outdoor inspiration? Look no further than this Before & After: A Curvy UK Garden Design That’s Accessible to All
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I think he means your drainage system needs to be able to handle an all day downpour without overflowing, or a slow moving hurricane, if you're in their territory.
How much$$$
sarolsarol, Plenty. Then add more.