A "Godzilla" El Niño Is Coming. Is Your Garden Ready?
You may have seen the headlines this week reporting on a developing El Niño event so strong that scientists are calling it "Godzilla," potentially one of the most powerful on record. The Met Office says it increases the chances of wetter, stormier conditions across the UK and north-west Europe this autumn and winter, and London, in particular, is being flagged as exposed on multiple fronts: storm surges pushing up the tidal Thames, swollen rivers and tributaries, and intense surface water in between.
As Emma Howard Boyd, who leads the London Climate Resilience Review, put it:
"London comes top for all hazards, flooding, overheating, subsidence."
It's not exactly light reading. But it got us thinking about something we deal with on almost every project we design, not as a headline-grabbing crisis, but as a quiet, practical question. Where does the water actually go when it rains?
Most gardens aren't built to cope with more water
The average UK garden was never really designed with extreme rainfall in mind. Lawns compact over time and stop absorbing water the way they should. Patios and driveways are often laid flush to the house with nowhere for run-off to escape except straight toward the walls. And when a period of heavy rain does hit, water pools where it shouldn't, drains overflow, and the same low corner of the garden turns into a bog every single time.
With events like this one making wetter winters more likely rather than less, a garden that can only cope with "normal" rainfall is going to feel that pressure more and more often. The good news is that most of the fixes aren't dramatic. They just need to be designed in properly, rather than left to chance.
Designing gardens that harvest water, rather than fight it
Here's how we think about it when we're planning drainage and water management into a new garden design.
Permeable paving, not just hard standing. Traditional impermeable paving sends every drop of rain straight into the drainage system, which is exactly what overwhelms it during a downpour. Permeable paving, resin-bound surfaces, and gravel with a proper sub-base let water soak through into the ground gradually, taking pressure off drains and reducing surface pooling.
Rain gardens and planted swales. A shallow, planted dip in the right part of the garden can catch run-off from a roof or patio and let it filter slowly into the soil rather than rushing straight to a drain. Planted with moisture-loving species that can also cope with dry spells, a rain garden doubles as an attractive planting feature the rest of the year. It doesn't have to look like infrastructure.
Water butts and attenuation tanks. The simplest form of water harvesting is still one of the most effective: capturing roof run-off before it ever reaches the drainage system. Beyond a standard water butt, underground attenuation tanks can store much larger volumes and release them slowly, which is particularly useful for bigger roofs, outbuildings, or driveways.
Grading and falls done properly. So much drainage trouble comes down to levels. Patios, lawns and paths all need a deliberate, calculated fall so that water is guided away from the house and toward a soakaway, rain garden, or drain, not left to find its own way, which it usually does in the wrong direction.
Soakaways sized for reality, not the average. A soakaway calculated for "typical" rainfall will struggle in an event like the one being forecast this winter. Sizing drainage for the wetter extremes we're now seeing more regularly, rather than historical averages, makes a garden meaningfully more resilient, not just compliant on paper.
Green roofs on outbuildings and garden structures. Sheds, garden rooms, and bin stores all offer an easy opportunity for a green roof, which slows and absorbs rainfall right at the source rather than letting it all hit the ground at once.
Resilience doesn't mean giving up on beauty
None of this needs to come at the expense of the garden you actually want. Rain gardens can be genuinely beautiful planting features. Permeable paving now comes in the same finishes as traditional stone. A well-placed water butt can be built into joinery so it disappears entirely. Designed properly, a garden that copes brilliantly with a "Godzilla" winter is still a garden you'd be proud to sit in on a warm one.
If you're planning a redesign and want drainage and water management built in from the start, rather than bolted on after the first flood, we'd love to have an informal chat.
If you fancy an informal chat about your own garden, please get in touch.
