MIgardener: We Have a BIG Problem. The Farm is Under Water.
After record rain and snowfall for the month of February, the warm weather has put the farm at risk of flooding. We are going to save the trees, reduce the water, and come up with plans to reduce the water in the future so this doesn’t happen again.
We lived on the back side of a private lake in MI. There was a dirt two track to the house. Spring was the WORST! I had to have my mother park a car out by the road for me because we couldn't drive a car through the mud. Good luck!!
In the Skagit Valley of Washington state where flooding is always an issue the farmers have installed permanent drainage ditches that remove the standing water from the higher row levels in crop fields. They don't permanently remove the water but give it a place to migrate to in the fields and perks it slowly back into the ground for crops or can be pumped back into the fields. These deep water berms provide habitat for birds, frogs, salamanders, and flora and all work into the Permaculture methods. It is important to "watch" your surface water and attempt to "slow it down" with "shallow drainage berms" before it hits the deeper berms so you are not losing vital nutrient's. "Peat moss pits" have been incorporated using these methods and is useful for continued building of good tilth.
I remember my mother telling us "if you're going to buy land , go look for it when it rains or there's a hurricane". This is so true. We bought our land in 1968 and couldn't have made a better choice. Our land is high enough that we are so lucky ,we never flood. Mother nature is something we can control. ✌️👋 Diana Torres
I think I've seen where someone needed to clean a culvert pipe. They threaded a rope through the pipe, tied an inner tube (?) to one end, tractor to the other end and pulled. This cleared the pipe. Was I dreaming?😂
Water is good, but flooding out is not. At least you don't have to worry about you trees being watered and in drought like we have in Lake of the Ozarks.
Is it remotely possible to use cover crops (w/ a large taproot) to capture some of the water? According to Gabe brown he has captured the water with deep rooters. Water is so precious when you need it.
You need that field professionally tiled, and that's not cheap! You're looking at several thousands of dollars. If the county Drain Commissioner decides to do anything alongside the road, that too is going to cost several thousands of dollars, they just assess that cost to your property taxes. I can tell by looking at that land it's not good farmland and all that runoff from the road is contamination, you need grass buffer strips along the road. The stuff you're planting now in the greenhouse is too early, that ground is never going to be dry enough in the field when those plants are ready to go out & anything you do plant there come a heavy rain later on is toast. That ground would never perk if you decided to build a home there. My suggestion to you is contact your local Conservation District before doing anything else. You have a real mess over there.
I would put a t-post on either side of that pit culvert so you don't fall in to it, and to make it easier to find when there is snow on the ground. I hate that they just scrapes all the debris in to the ditch. I am glad you were able to get the water moving. I was worried about your trees.
I can so relate to the flooding. I live in Missouri, just in the foothills of the Ozarks. The only thing that grows well here is clay and rocks. It takes so very little rainfall to create flooding. 😢
Staying on Top of It. Great video. Life Isn't always easy, but you will Overcome. Thanks for sharing the rough times along with the good. Looking forward to reports of a Great Orchard.
hey im a geologist out of Detroit if you need help lemme know. TBH it sounds like you have a handle on it, but you would be suprised at how many people dont understand how water moves. If you g**gle ground penetrating radar in detroit and find andy, thats me
If it were easy, everyone would be doing it. You'll figure it out and learn from your mistakes, but I appreciate when people share their "oops" as well as their success.
I think you did a great job with getting the survey, and you kinda knew and planned where you need drainage. And I noticed your neighbor across the street has grass and no ice or snow? Grass sucks up a lot of water but the right kind can help you. It makes a great base structure to walk on and keeps dust and mud at bay? 👍
consider a variety of clovers, etc before you just go grass….we prefer dandelion, clover, and creeping thyme – less mowing, beneficial to the soil, edible, etc… just a thought for you to consider. Happy farming!
In Wisconsin, we call it 'mud season'. 🤫Then onto the fun season of construction and gardening. Waiting a year before starting also helps, as well as watching where weeds and perennials grow. We didn't used to have the ease of soil tests. 😉
Mother Nature changes her assault yearly. What you think you have solved this year, next year will throw a different curve. With farming, you have to be resilient enough to bend with what is thrown at you. You have to be able to bend and not snap with frustration.
It's only a problem if the thaw is followed by buckets of rain. Observe the field. When you know where the ditches need to go, you'll have a project. This has been a very fast melt in the Laurentians where I am. I found a spot in an enclosure with about a foot of water. That's a project also.
Every gardener/farmer no matter how small or large learns that vigilance is key! How satisfying to not only get that water flowing but identify and problem solve… Cool work Luke!
This video reminded me of my childhood though in a city not on a farm. We had a storm drain at the end of our street that was shaded by a big tree, so the water would freeze down there, creating a big lake like you had. I always enjoyed going down there with a pick and shovel and breaking the ice out of the drain to watch the water flow. Like you said, it's the little things 😂
The camera needs to follow your lead, you were pointing to some draining water and the camera didn't show it too much. You should look into the type of grass that mainly grows deep into the ground and not a lot in height.
50 Comments
Luke, that's great farmland. For rice.
Wow, this will be good to know when we come back this Spring to buy property in the Thumb area. Thanks for posting this video.
We lived on the back side of a private lake in MI. There was a dirt two track to the house. Spring was the WORST! I had to have my mother park a car out by the road for me because we couldn't drive a car through the mud. Good luck!!
Mark the culvert opening maybe with a couple driveway snowplow markers
In the Skagit Valley of Washington state where flooding is always an issue the farmers have installed permanent drainage ditches that remove the standing water from the higher row levels in crop fields. They don't permanently remove the water but give it a place to migrate to in the fields and perks it slowly back into the ground for crops or can be pumped back into the fields. These deep water berms provide habitat for birds, frogs, salamanders, and flora and all work into the Permaculture methods. It is important to "watch" your surface water and attempt to "slow it down" with "shallow drainage berms" before it hits the deeper berms so you are not losing vital nutrient's. "Peat moss pits" have been incorporated using these methods and is useful for continued building of good tilth.
I remember my mother telling us "if you're going to buy land , go look for it when it rains or there's a hurricane". This is so true. We bought our land in 1968 and couldn't have made a better choice. Our land is high enough that we are so lucky ,we never flood. Mother nature is something we can control. ✌️👋 Diana Torres
So sorry.
I think I've seen where someone needed to clean a culvert pipe. They threaded a rope through the pipe, tied an inner tube (?) to one end, tractor to the other end and pulled. This cleared the pipe. Was I dreaming?😂
I’ve been farming 46 years… WELCOME to the party! Don’t get the tractor stuck!
This was youtubes finest video today. Thanks for sharing, bud. 😊
Water is good, but flooding out is not. At least you don't have to worry about you trees being watered and in drought like we have in Lake of the Ozarks.
Is it remotely possible to use cover crops (w/ a large taproot) to capture some of the water? According to Gabe brown he has captured the water with deep rooters. Water is so precious when you need it.
I like your optimism! Listening to you, I feel like it'll all be ok! 😊
grow native perennial plants in between, chaos stormwater management so-to-say.
now you know why you got it so cheap lol
would a few pumps attached to hoses help drain the flooded parts?
thanks for the idea of laser because we have 2 trees that might be retaining water
A victory is a victory!! Big or small.
I’m super sorry to see this wishing u and the land the best…
You need that field professionally tiled, and that's not cheap! You're looking at several thousands of dollars. If the county Drain Commissioner decides to do anything alongside the road, that too is going to cost several thousands of dollars, they just assess that cost to your property taxes. I can tell by looking at that land it's not good farmland and all that runoff from the road is contamination, you need grass buffer strips along the road. The stuff you're planting now in the greenhouse is too early, that ground is never going to be dry enough in the field when those plants are ready to go out & anything you do plant there come a heavy rain later on is toast. That ground would never perk if you decided to build a home there. My suggestion to you is contact your local Conservation District before doing anything else. You have a real mess over there.
You remind me of when I was a youngster digging little ditches to move the water off my dad's driveway. It was satisfying.
Oh nooooo
Did you have a perk test before you bought this land?
good work Luke ! nice tractor too.
I would put a t-post on either side of that pit culvert so you don't fall in to it, and to make it easier to find when there is snow on the ground. I hate that they just scrapes all the debris in to the ditch. I am glad you were able to get the water moving. I was worried about your trees.
I can so relate to the flooding. I live in Missouri, just in the foothills of the Ozarks. The only thing that grows well here is clay and rocks. It takes so very little rainfall to create flooding. 😢
Staying on Top of It. Great video. Life Isn't always easy, but you will Overcome. Thanks for sharing the rough times along with the good. Looking forward to reports of a Great Orchard.
You may need a larger culvert.
Great work!!!😮😂❤
hey im a geologist out of Detroit if you need help lemme know. TBH it sounds like you have a handle on it, but you would be suprised at how many people dont understand how water moves. If you g**gle ground penetrating radar in detroit and find andy, thats me
If it were easy, everyone would be doing it. You'll figure it out and learn from your mistakes, but I appreciate when people share their "oops" as well as their success.
Michigan had a hard, heavy snow winter. I doubt it will be a problem every year.
We had same thing happened last spring after planting. Had to move everything. We had moved on our property 4 months earlier. Lesson learned.
I think you did a great job with getting the survey, and you kinda knew and planned where you need drainage. And I noticed your neighbor across the street has grass and no ice or snow? Grass sucks up a lot of water but the right kind can help you. It makes a great base structure to walk on and keeps dust and mud at bay? 👍
Too bad your property doesn’t have Kalkaska sand like we have (and so many other areas also have).
consider a variety of clovers, etc before you just go grass….we prefer dandelion, clover, and creeping thyme – less mowing, beneficial to the soil, edible, etc… just a thought for you to consider. Happy farming!
Looks like you’re planting rice from now on.
The farmer on our orchard (prior to us owning it) put in French drains to drain the swampy sections. I believe he paired it with clay half pipe.
In Wisconsin, we call it 'mud season'. 🤫Then onto the fun season of construction and gardening. Waiting a year before starting also helps, as well as watching where weeds and perennials grow. We didn't used to have the ease of soil tests. 😉
Mother Nature changes her assault yearly. What you think you have solved this year, next year will throw a different curve. With farming, you have to be resilient enough to bend with what is thrown at you. You have to be able to bend and not snap with frustration.
It's only a problem if the thaw is followed by buckets of rain. Observe the field. When you know where the ditches need to go, you'll have a project. This has been a very fast melt in the Laurentians where I am. I found a spot in an enclosure with about a foot of water. That's a project also.
be patient, as soon as the ground defrosts! It will go away.
❤
Every gardener/farmer no matter how small or large learns that vigilance is key! How satisfying to not only get that water flowing but identify and problem solve… Cool work Luke!
Will you build a well for excess water to flow in or build hardscape to prevent snow and debris from clogging the ditch to the road?
Please show an update when you add the drainage tile. Thanks
This happens every year at an orchard near me. They don't do anything to fix it and the trees do really well.
This video reminded me of my childhood though in a city not on a farm. We had a storm drain at the end of our street that was shaded by a big tree, so the water would freeze down there, creating a big lake like you had.
I always enjoyed going down there with a pick and shovel and breaking the ice out of the drain to watch the water flow.
Like you said, it's the little things 😂
The camera needs to follow your lead, you were pointing to some draining water and the camera didn't show it too much. You should look into the type of grass that mainly grows deep into the ground and not a lot in height.
You could try this to make sure the culverts are clear & able to flow at maximum capacity.
Clever Culvert Cleaning Method
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOjXjp8vMfk