Possible Solutions to Poor Drainage.

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Hi all,

Just some queries on water drainage in clay soils.

I have a flat area that takes a long time to dry out after a winter rain.  Nothing seems to be suffering from wet feet (yet), but I'm wondering about remedies.

First, is there any point in digging a dry well if it has no overflow option?  If it's just a hole in the ground full of rocks, will it do any good?

Second, are ornamental grasses good for absorbing excess water?  Lawns are famously thirsty, so I was wondering.  Also, I have a few Melaleuca quinquenervia on the site, and wondered if perhaps they were useful in siphoning off excess water?  

What brought this to mind was a conversation with a nurseryman in the (deciduous) Blue Oak Woodlands east of Stockton, CA.  He observed that regardless of rain or drought, the creek always rose in the Fall when the oaks' leaves fell; once the trees were no longer drawing up groundwater, groundwater filled the creek.  If this is the case, maybe the evergreen Melaleucas in my garden are acting as a year 'round drainage system.

Thanks for any input.

-Ben Armentrout-Wiswall

Simi Valley, Inland Ventura County, CA