Landscaping Ideas for Damp Soil

Trees

• Not many evergreen trees thrive in damp sites, but exceptions include the Southern magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora), a North American native that grows well in moist to wet soils. This 80-foot-tall tree has dark, broad leaves and blooms with aromatic white flowers in summer. The white spruce (Picea glauca) also tolerates damp sites. This evergreen grows to 60 feet tall and has pale-green needles. Callery pears (Pyrus calleryana) also grow in damp sites. These deciduous trees are prized for their white spring blossoms and lustrous, dark foliage that turns red, yellow and purple in fall. Other moisture-tolerant deciduous trees include willows. Weeping willows (Salix babylonica) and white willows (S. alba) both grow well in moist, sunny sites, and boast narrow foliage.

Shrubs

• Several shrubs in the Cornus genus tolerate moist or even wet soil. Commonly called dogwoods, these deciduous shrubs have colorful fall foliage and produce abundant spring flowers. Species that thrive in damp soil include the Tatarian (C. alba) and the redtwig (C. sericea), which grow to 9 or 10 feet tall and have bright-red stems. The evergreen mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia) thrives in moist soil but also tolerates drought. It grows to 15 feet tall and has lustrous, dark foliage. Mountain laurels bloom with white-to-pink flowers in late spring.

Groundcovers

• Groundcovers help prevent runoff in moist areas. Several species in the Carex genus tolerate damp soil. These ornamental grasses range in size, form and color from the 3-foot-tall palm sedge (C. muskingumensis) -- which has fine, arching foliage -- to creeping broadleafed sedge, which grows in 8-inch-tall clumps of wide fronds. Bugleweed (Ajuga reptans) also grows well in moist soil. This evergreen groundcover only grows to 4 inches tall but spreads quickly. It has lustrous foliage and blooms with blue-purple flowers in spring.

Perennials

• Most perennials grow best in well-drained soil, but a few tolerate, or even prefer, damp sites. These include the New England aster (Acorus calomus), a 3- to 7-foot-tall perennial wildflower that blooms with purple-blue flowers from summer through fall. The larger blue flag iris (Iris versicolor) thrives in moist sites and tolerates standing water. It blooms with blue-violet flowers in early summer and grows to 3 feet tall. The cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis) also thrives in wet sites. This 3- to 5-foot perennial blooms in fall with spikes of bright-red, bird-attracting flowers.