Are your garden beds looking a little worse for wear after every storm?
The average homeowner spends hours out in their garden weeding, planting and mulching…. Only to have it all flush away with a heavy rain storm. And most blame mother nature.
But here’s the real problem:
The problem actually begins up on your roof. Your gutters (and the roof they sit on) can have a massive impact on the health of your garden. When clogged, your plants suffer the consequences.
Let’s dive in.
What you’ll discover:
- The Roof And Gutter Connection
- How Bad Gutters Destroy Garden Beds
- Signs Your Gutters Are Hurting Your Garden
- Simple Fixes Any Homeowner Can Do
The Roof And Gutter Connection
Before we look at your garden, we need to look up.
Think about how rain falls onto your roof. Each drop starts at the roof, then trickles down the incline, straight into your gutters. But when your roof has problems, water doesn’t fall where it should. That’s where professional roof coating services come in to protect your entire home. A well-coated roof allows water to fall cleanly into your gutters, rather than pooling on your roof, leaking into your home, or running down at odd places. Companies like KY-KO roofing and repairs offer roof coating services that help seal cracks, prolong your roof’s lifespan, and ensure rainwater falls right where it should.
Here’s why this matters for your garden:
As your roof coating starts to deteriorate water will take matters into its own hands. Overflow your gutters, run down your siding and fall right onto your plants below.
Over time, this creates:
- Soil erosion around your beds
- Waterlogged plants and rotting roots
- Washed-out mulch
- Foundation problems
Tip: The roof and gutters are interconnected. Repairing one and not the other is a waste of money.
How Bad Gutters Destroy Garden Beds
Now to the fun part.
When water finds a way to where it shouldn’t be, your garden suffers. And it can happen quickly. Water damage is one of the three most common homeowners insurance claims in America, with the average claim running approximately $12,514.
Ouch.
The majority of that damage begins small. An overflowing gutter here. A broken downspout there. Suddenly your gorgeous landscape is a swamp. Let’s take a look at exactly what happens…
Soil Erosion
Rainwater flowing off a two-story roof terminates on the ground at approximately 20 miles per hour.
Imagine all that force hitting soft mulched garden beds. Every time it storms top soil gets washed away, plant roots are exposed, and unsightly ruts are gouged through your beds. Eventually you’ll have trenches where gardens once were.
Waterlogged Roots
Plants need water. But they don’t need a flood.
Overflowing gutters leads to soil around your beds becoming saturated. Roots suffocate without oxygen. They begin to rot. The plant could look perfectly healthy above ground for weeks…
Then it just dies for “no reason”.
Mulch And Nutrient Loss
That fresh mulch you spread last spring? Gone.
Clogged gutters dump mulch directly out of beds and onto your lawn (or the street). Worse still, runoff takes the nutrients in your soil with it. The plants you love can’t grow well, even if they don’t die.
Signs Your Gutters Are Hurting Your Garden
Not sure if your gutters are the culprit?
Here are the warning signs you need to watch for:
- Water pouring over the sides of your gutters during rain
- Trenches or channels forming in your garden beds
- Plants dying near the edges of your house
- Mulch washing out onto your lawn or driveway
- Standing water pools after storms
- Plants actually growing out of your gutters (yes, really)
These are signs that you should intervene. The sooner you do, the less damage there will be.
Simple Fixes Any Homeowner Can Do
The good news?
Simple Solutions To Your Garden & Gutter Problems. Never feel like you have to be experienced to take care of what’s happening outside. These are some of the top fixes.
Clean Your Gutters
This is the simplest fix and it makes a huge difference.
Scrub (or pay someone to scrub) off leaves, twigs, and debris. Sweep or blow your roofs of debris at least twice a season — spring and fall. You may need to do this more frequently if you have a lot of trees surrounding your house.
Pretty simple, right?
Check Your Downspouts
Make sure your downspouts push water at least 4-6 feet away from your foundation.
If they are watering right up against your beds, install extenders. These inexpensive plastic hoses are available at hardware stores. They help push the water spray away from your precious plants and out into the lawn.
Inspect Your Roof
Look up at your roof from the ground. Do you see:
- Missing or curling shingles
- Sagging or uneven areas
- Dark stains or streaks
- Peeling roof coating
Any one of these flags is reason enough to call in a professional inspector. Repairing minor roof issues now will save you thousands of dollars down the road. The average water damage cost sits at around $3,867 – that’s not even including how much your beds will cost to replant.
Add A Rain Barrel
Want to turn a problem into a bonus?
Put a rain barrel on the end of your downspout. It will collect the water before it damages anything. Then you can use that water to nourish plants when it hasn’t rained. Sounds like a win-win situation.
Regrade Your Beds
If water keeps pooling in one spot, the ground itself might be the issue.
You don’t want your soil grading towards your house, you want it running away from your house. Correcting years of poor drainage is as easy as a simple regrade. Buy some top soil, raise your low spots and slope away from the foundation.
Bringing It All Together
Your garden and your gutters are way more connected than you might think.
Rain should only fall where you want it to fall if your roof and gutters are healthy. Your garden suffers whenever it rains if they’re not. Let’s review briefly:
- Keep your gutters clean and clear
- Extend downspouts away from your beds
- Check your roof at least once a year
- Look out for early warning signs
- Take action fast when you spot problems
Homeowners who do it right have healthier yards, happier plants and a longer lasting home. Those who don’t…repair their homes for thousands of dollars and replant beds every season.
Fix the roof, fix the gutters, and your garden will thank you for it.
