5th September 2022
Nestled in the bounds of Windsor Great Park, The Savill Garden has been recognised as one of the finest ornamental gardens in Britain since its creation in the 1930s. Boasting 35 acres of interconnected gardens and woodland, it offers visitors a kaleidoscopic journey through a bountiful selection of rare and beautiful flora.
Despite the diligent maintenance efforts of The Crown Estate however, some sections of the garden have begun to suffer from persistent waterlogging. This not only has a detrimental impact on some of the plant life, but also disrupts visitors and their ability to enjoy the gardens to their fullest.
With periods of persistent and prolonged rainfall becoming increasingly common - as well as periods of extended drought - management of natural turf's hydrology is becoming an ever-more crucial centrepiece of proper grounds maintenance. However, the optimal solution sought by The Crown Estate was one that not only mitigated the drainage issues, but one that did so whilst inducing minimal disturbance or disruption to the gardens or their visitors.
With in-house remedial works having proven insufficiently effective, Turfdry were contacted on the basis of their being a true turf specialist, with extensive experience designing and installing high-performance drainage systems for a wide variety of natural turf surfaces with its unique Hydraway Sportsdrain.
Through a series of site visits, surveys, and desk studies, a drainage design strategy was created for the most impacted areas of the gardens. Whilst initial works are focused on the most problematic areas, a broader consideration of the hydrology of the wider site ensures that any investments made now are optimally cost-effective, whilst ensuring the client is able to make better informed decisions regarding long-term budget planning.
The initial installation phase has seen the most problematic area of the Savill Garden remedied with a Hydraway Sportsdrain system installed at 2-2.5m variable spacing, with the system outfalling into the gardens' existing ditch network.
In addition to providing a substantially increased drainage performance in comparison to conventional drainage systems (with a water intake rate more than 2.5x that of even 100mm diameter plastic pipe), Hydraway has a narrow installation profile thanks to its vertical design, installed in trenches approximately 65mm wide. This means that industry-leading drainage performance is delivered, whilst the disruption to the ground during and after installation is minimised.
With performance monitoring set to take place over the autumn and winter, extension of the drainage system across more of The Savill Garden's problematically waterlogged areas is anticipated in 2023.
