posted 12 years ago
My housemate is convinced that there isn't anything that can be done until he can afford to spend a huge amount installing a complex french drain system, but I thought I'd see if anything one here any suggestions.
My housemate owns about 11 acres of mostly native species plantation woodland. It's a very clay soil, rather steep, and often receives far too much rain. Plus, we are on the bottom of the hill so get the run off from the grass field above (which is horse grazing). It has some drainage ditches but when there's been heavy rainfall it just can't cope and everything turns into nasty slippy mud. Some of the worst ground is where is already lots of birch, ash, hazel and hawthorn already planted and fairly well established. Sometimes the water table gets so high that the path next to the biggest drainage ditch becomes flooded. I think the worse problems are the water that comes up from the water table, and keeping paths usable (day to day it's low level, but at times there can be heavy footfall due to having up to 10 people in there for a few days at a time).
The safety issue comes from the slippy mud. My house is a craftsman and has his workshops sited in his woods. Last September he was tidying up some rubbish out the front and slipped over, landing on a broken strip light lightbulb. He cut through to the bone, severing the nerve but thankfully sparing the tendon. It took him a couple of months to get back up and working properly again. He's still only got limited feeling in that finger.
Having done some reading around here this weekend I've had a couple of ideas that I'd like to bounce off others before we start experimenting. I've brushed against permaculture many times over the last ten years but am only new really starting to investigate and learn. Possibly because it was only in 2011 that I finally bought a house and have my own land to look after (as opposed to renting houses or my housemate's land, even though I'm talking about my housemate's land here).
I'm thinking that some hugelkulture beds uphill from the main work area (which is mainly flat) might help mop up some of the water.
About the paths, we're tried laying wood chip mulch in the past but it's a massive investment to produce that much woodchip. We've tried brush paths but again it was a big investment and they didn't survive well when they got really wet and were being used lots. In order to lift the path above the clay and produce a drier path surface, how well do you think it would work if we used larger pieces of wood (say firewood size for example?)?
Last bit of information. We don't live on site. It's visited most days, but sometimes is left for a week here and there. We have rabbits, hares, squirrels, deer, mice, and badgers. We have tried to grow food there in the past, but all attempts have failed. At the moment the woods are mainly used as a location for courses, camping and are also used to produce firewood and charcoal.
Thank you in advance.