My community garden plot turned into a mud wrestling pit after the sprinklers broke

Last Tuesday, the timer on our shared garden's sprinkler system got stuck on for about 4 hours straight. I showed up to water my tomatoes and found my entire 10x10 foot plot completely flooded, with my seedlings floating away. I had to wade in and unplug the main valve while my boots got sucked into the mud. What's the best way to fix waterlogged soil without killing the plants that are left?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_olivia8d ago

Wouldn't adding more stuff just make the mud worse right now?

joseph_roberts5d ago

Totally get what you mean about not wanting to make a bigger mess! Kevin's idea about dry compost is a good one though, because it actually soaks up the water instead of adding more wet stuff. I had to do that last spring when my whole garden bed turned into a swamp. It feels wrong to add anything, but the right dry material can really pull the moisture out and save your plants from drowning.

kevinc848d ago

Man, that sounds like a total mess. My buddy had a similar thing happen when his rain barrel overflowed. He ended up gently forking over the wet soil to let air in, and then he mixed in a bunch of dry compost to soak up the extra water. It saved most of his peppers. Have you tried adding something like that to help it dry out?