Flooded but not disheartened!

Do fish arrive in your garden from other people's ponds ?

No, cos we're all 'flood prone' round here none of us have fish ponds - well, I did have a small goldfish pond ago but they got swept away in a flood so I never made that mistake again :-( But I have had ducks, swans and coots swimming around the garden today!

Goodness me, hope it doesn,t get into your house....

You are coping very well GM, I would head for the hills.

I agree with Ams. I live near the top of a hill !
Amazing to have the water birds visiting !

Ducks,swans and coots...now thats unusual ! You obviously deal pragmatically with your situation. !

Oh that looks bad. I've never been flooded. It must be awful.

omg, that is bad. i though my garden was a swamp. its nothing compared to yours

Blimey that would sicken me, but like you said you have learned to cope with it.

I hope it doesn't come into your house Maxine. You must be very calm to cope with this.

thanks everyone for your messages! Fortunately, we have never been flooded it the house, cos we raised it by several feet when we first bought it (a labour of love, living wiht builders for a year!) and we have created a walkway around the house too, so we can get to and from during the floods with ease.
This morning, as I look out the kitchen window, I can see that the flood-water level is slowly dropping and some of the higher parts of the garden are already visible again. The 'cottage garden' bit looks like the Battle of the Somme at the moment, but I am not worried, as i know from previous experience that all the plants in there have survived many a flood and no doubt will again! of course, this confidence is only the results of years of trial and error (see www.thefloodedgarden.com for more info) to know which plants will survive and which ones will not. To be honest, the biggest issue is getting rid of the mud, but it is amazing how much goes away next time it rains. the rest we will 'round up' with the pressure hose and add it to the compost heap (being dense silt-like mud, it's not ideal to put it straight back onto our clay soil).

I don,t know which river you are on but I love the way you accept it as part of the way you live in return for what is proberly stunning views of a river most of the year .......

well, we've learnt to manage the situation, by choosing the right plants and using techniques such as raised beds, grit in the soil (to improve drainage after floods, as well as helping to prevent general waterlogging during heavy rain) so it's been a good learning experience.

I set up my web site www.thefloodedgarden.com for that reason - we learnt the hard way, and want to share that experience with other gardeners, whether they are dealing with floods, or just have heavy clay or waterlogged soil that drains badly.

Ooh Maxine......a friend of mine used to have a place on the river Severn and this last few years it has flooded and into the house. They have a new place there and it has been raised like yours. Hope alls well and it will drain away soon.