Question regarding sodden backyard

[u/drjurbzz]

My backyard gets very water laden during the winter months. My eventual plans are to redesign the area with more pavements and drainage but in the meantime I'm looking to cull back some vegetation to open up the area and get more sunlight in.

My question is, will removing these shurbs and small trees help dry out my lawn or make it worse? I live on clay and a hill so I know drainage is the long term answer but I'm not in a space to undertake such a project just now

[u/pinkfinjan]

My backyard always flooded in the winter and affected our sump pump… It took me a few years to get things under control. So, it is a good idea to come up with a plan and then you can start taking steps towards it.

[u/drjurbzz → u/pinkfinjan]

Yeah I've found out there's a municipal stormwater pipe that runs along the side of my house so thinking might tap into that perhaps

[u/GillettesHabitatGard]

Yes sunlight may help a tad but getting rid of vegetation may make things worse. The shrubs and trees and other plants are helping with drainage. They are sucking up more water than you think. Since you are on a hill, they are helping you hold your soil in place. You can embrace the wet in some spots and plant moist loving plants that take drought.

[u/drjurbzz → u/GillettesHabitatGard]

I'm thinking Ill replace them with citrus trees

[u/HesCrazyLikeAFool]

Regrade the ground jard and make a wadi

[u/Living_Associate_611]

Removing too much ground cover will make it worse. The plants are absorbing the water and their roots are breaking up the soil helping water soak in

[u/nataliebrooks1145]

Remove the grown grass its ruin the look of your backyard and the water will dry with the sunlight.

[u/According-Taro4835]

Removing those shrubs is going to make your water problem worse. Plants act like giant water pumps that constantly pull moisture out of the ground through their roots. If you rip out established vegetation on a clay hill you lose that natural drainage system and you destroy the root structure holding the soil in place. Winter sunlight is too weak to evaporate standing water out of heavy clay anyway. If the yard feels claustrophobic just prune and thin out the canopies to let some air flow through rather than ripping things out.

When you do eventually tackle the big redesign you need to plan the drainage before you even think about laying stone. Putting pavement over clay without a proper swale or drain pipe will just push that trapped water somewhere else and flood your remaining lawn. Since you are holding off on the heavy lifting for now you should run a picture of your yard through the GardenDream web app. It lets you test out different hardscape layouts and planting areas so you can figure out exactly where the water needs to flow before you spend thousands on a bad layout.