Who’s ready to talk about drainage issues again? What can I say, water is everywhere and can do major damage to a landscape without proper guidance. In our many years of working on people’s yards, drainage is almost always a part of the project. Builders often create beautiful houses without giving much thought to the way rain and moisture will play into the home’s durability. The outside is the last thing people tend to worry about when they’ve spent most of their budget and time on the inside of the home, the “important” stuff. This is because, frankly, drainage is not sexy. It’s not something anyone considers when looking for a home. But we can assure you, it’s worth caring about. Whether you live in a million dollar mansion or a two bedroom cabin, the management of the water in your yard makes a difference.
Located on a river with a very steep backyard and side-yard, this next house we worked on was bound to have drainage problems.
You may remember this house from a previous blog, Digging Deep in Dahlonega. In that project, water was leaking into the client’s basement. We had to locate the source of the drainage, fill the void between the concrete and the home, and create a system to redirect the water. Unfortunately for this client, the drainage problems didn’t end there.




The client also tried to make the side of their house higher by adding soil to shield from the water. Unfortunately, they added too much dirt and it covered up some of the siding which can attract bugs, termites, and unwanted moisture.

To turn this treacherous mud pit into a traversable safe haven, we had to redo the client’s entire backyard. It would take a lot of problem solving but we wanted to give the family an outdoor space that could function without any stress or ongoing maintenance issues. As always, we also aimed to construct a beautiful landscape full of planting that fits their needs while looking amazing.









This project took a lot of work and planning, but overall we think it turned out nicely. Our clients were happy, their drainage issues were solved, the foliage added more privacy and beauty to the yard, and most importantly, no more mudslide!