Mergoat
Case Study 2

Stormwater Management

Resolving unmanaged stormwater while designing for native plant revitalization.
MERGOAT

Mergoat Land Design and Restoration

Sorrel Inman

[email protected]
(865) 250-6140

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MERGOAT

Mergoat Land Design and Restoration

Sorrel Inman

[email protected]
(865) 250-6140

This site is situated within a suburban neighborhood in Cedar Bluff in Knoxville, TN. The client called us with a significant stormwater management issue that had become more problematic during the two years prior. We decided to resolve this matter by correcting the grade of the ground bear the house and adding a dry creek bed. We chose a plant pallette that would replicate woodland edge along a creek.

Overview

DESIGNER
Sorrel
LOCATION
Cedar Bluff
Setting
Semi-Wooded Suburban Lor
PROJECT TYPE
Stormwater Management
SIZE
< 0.5 acres
completion
Ongoing
Map of region where storm water surge created a new opportunity
Image of the foundation of the home during a heavy rain with water pouring into the basement door and a massive stream of water running in the background
Close up image of the foundation of the home were the ground has been carved out and a sump pump installed to pump out the flooding water
A suburban home pictured by trees with no leaves, showing the site undisturbed before the beginning of the project. It is clear in the image that the land is sloped toward the house and likely pushing water in that direction
A closer image of the undisturbed project site prior to installation where patch grass and leaves cover the ground
Another angle of the jobsite prior to installation
Ice sits on the ground during winter where water had previously flooded due to lack of stormwater management
GIS maps were used to understand the property lines in relation to the flow of the water
A quick on site drawing to illustrate an idea being communicated to the client about a potential solution
GIS maps were used to figure out which watershed the home was located in and to determine the broader scope of the water flow in the neighborhood
Site Analysis

Light

Part-shade

Water

Flash flooding

SOIL

Average

GRADE

Flat

This client called us to address a flooding issue along the foundation of their house. Heavy rain sent surging floodwater directly into the home’s crawlspace, threatening to compromise the home’s foundation and increasing the chance of mold. With the home’s foundation breached and soaking in stormwater, pooling was an additional threat in nearby land depressions.

An image of the designer’s workspace as they are deliberating on design choices
The plants to be installed during the first phase are outlined in red on this planting map and the excluded plants are shaded in blue
The final design and planting map with labels for each plant
A quick and dirty mock up of a possible design that includes both a dry creek bed and rain garden
A quick and dirty mock up of a design that include a bioswale filled with sedges rather than a dry creekbed

In order to resolve the water flow, we considered three different possible solutions: a sedge filled bio-swale ending in a rain garden, a dry creek bed ending in a rain garden, and either of those options without the rain garden. Our client chose the implement a dry creek bed without a rain garden. This option would provide an aesthetic element to address the water flow, but it could also be accomplished within the client’s budget as we cut out the rain garden and postponed the herbaceous layer of the design for a later date. We chose sedges and shrubs that are common for this kind of environment, including cherokee sedge (Carex cherokeensis), summersweet (Clethra alnifolia), dwarf fothergilla (Fothergilla gardenii), and winterberry holly (Ilex verticillata).

Ecological Solution
The final product of the installation with small shrubs, sedges, and a heavy layer of pine straw mulch
A blue spade penetrates the ground where the dry creek bed is being dug out and shaped
Numerous sod rolls lie on the ground in front of a sod cutting machine in preparation for installation
The complete installation with small shrubs, sedges, and pinestraw
Scattered rocks lying on the ground as the dry creek bed begins to take shape
Scattered rocks lie on the ground as the dry creek bed begins to take shape
Blue flags line the dry creek bed marking where sedges will be installed
Shrubs in pots line the dry creek bed where they are to be installed
A blue out line marks the bare dirt where the dry creek bed will eventually be installed.
Execution

After digging the swale and gently regrading the ground away from the house, we planted sedges to wrap around the edges of the dry creek bed. We placed plants along the creek bed which will eventually colonize and further shade the area.

The sun shines on dry creek bed as the plants begin to take root a few weeks after installation
The sedges begin to look more mature several months after installation
Sedges have begun to mature and all shrubs have leafed out during the first year after planting.

Weeks after installation, the plants begin to take root. Within the first year, sedges begin to form a dense ground layer, and the shrubs have leafed out proudly as they settle into their place. After observing the dry creek bed through several rains, we realized we would have to edit the offshoot that ran to the door because the flow of water had the tendency to back flow toward the crawlspace entry. We resolved this by placing a discreet berm where the offshoot meets the main stream.

Maturation

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