The soil in my back yard is primarily clay and does not drain well.

In fact, some really nice garden additions thrive in standing water.

Start with a larger shrub or tree, which will make the focal area of your rain or bog garden. We love willows for wet areas, and our French Pussy Willow is a fantastic ornamental choice for wet spots.

It is a fantastic shade tree for lots of sites besides wet ones too including dry ones.

Joe Pye Weed is another plant that loves wet feet. A native plant of North America, this tall perennial will attract butterflies in droves when it blooms in. Jun 29, Wet soil trees are a great way to help soak up excess water in your yard.

Many trees that grow in wet areas will use large amounts of water. This trait causes them to use up much of the water in their vicinity, which may be able to dry the surrounding area out enough so that other plants that are not as adapted to wet soil can survive.

Aug 20, Cephalanthus occidentalis – Buttonbush. Potentilla fruticosa – Bush Cinquefoil/Potentilla (thrives in higher pH soils) Sambucus canadensis – American Elderberry (right now it has been in standing water for weeks, outside my office/Kestrel on 9 Mile Creek) Amorpha fruticosa – Indigobush.

Jun 18, Water absorbing shrubs Inkberry (zones ) Button bush (zones ) Summersweet (zones ) Black chokeberry (zones ) American cranberrybush (zones ) Spice bush (zones ) Red twig dogwood (zones ) Blue elderberry (zones ). Dec 03, The British Columbia forestry website only has listings for native trees, but it mentions that the white spruce has a high tolerance for water surplus and is frequently found on water logged sites, but less tolerant of prolonged flooding.