i`m flooded out, bow wow and thrice woe

[shell]

today i had to get up and quickly let out the dogs from their pen as they were nearly 6 inches of water in there,and last night i for the first time put my daughters little dogs in there with my 2 dogs,they are handbag size practically,they almost floated out!they are ok now but i wish i`d built an ark not a bungalow, my bio unit is in the back garden and is covered by about 3 inches of water,hope i dont have poo everywhere,as i`m new to this i don`t know if it will be affected,my hubby has asked us not to flush the loo`s unless its really needed,we are not in the awful way that we see on the telly but all around the house is a moat,and there is water pouring in off the road and the nearby stream is overflowing,question?if i had planted tree`s in the back garden would it have helped as the take up a lot of water,and are there any water guzzling plants i could use as we often have wet ground,and would you suggest that ? and while i`m here anyone want 2 small dogs?my daughter and her partner have split up and i have custody of the dogs,they need a good home,both are splayed/neutered,vaccinated, they are a cross between a chiwowua and small jack russell,they are good with other dogs and the kids,but i have 2 dogs already 3 cats and now my daughters hamster(which bites me)my kitchen is like a rescue home and smells highly of wet dog,the kids and the dogs are tripping over each other and now grandad(89) has decided to join in by making a cup of tea for himself,and he has poor sight and probally will squash one of the little dogs before the days out,

[Milims]

Oh my goodness Shell!! You sound frantic! Sadly I can offer no more than a supportive hug and hopes that it stops raining and you all dry out soon. Good luck hun!

[mrsflibble]

all Ican offer are hugs and virtual towels.
*hugs*

[clare]

How awful, you have my sympathies.I ,for some reason, thought of rowan trees for planting to suck up water ,don't know why, I think we had them in our paddock when I lived at home for that reason(it was a bog in the heavy rains)but that was 20 years ago and 2 babies later so you may want to look into it!!

[shell]

thats really strange!i was looking at tree`s the other day as we drove down from tralee,and there where loads of tree`s with red berries,my daughter said their rowan tree`s,and i was wondering where i could get some as they looked so pretty,and even picturing where i could put them!
now i will look in the garden centre today and see what advice they give and also price up the tree`s,thanks for that,

[Thomzo]

Sorry to hear about the flooding. I do hope the house wasn't damaged and that your bio unit was ok.

Depending where you live, willow could be your answer. It loves wet soil and the roots will travel a long way to find water. That means that they are good at stabilising the soil. It also means that in dry weather they can cause a lot of damage to foundations etc so don't plant too near the house or the bio unit. It will also spread like wildfire if you aren't careful.

Willow is extremly useful (think willow weaving but it can also be coppiced for firewood). It's also happy to be chopped down to ground level every couple of years so you can keep it compact.

Zoe