For perennial or permanent plantings you should choose plants that are well suited to the native soils and conditions. Once the plants are in the ground there is little you can do to alter their soil condition that will be lasting. I doubt there is anything you can add to the soil that will make that Pieris happy in that site. It probably needs to be relocated.

Since this is a drainage area that is periodically subjected to saturation, you may be dealing with hydric soil conditions - those that at least periodically become anaerobic due to water saturation. You can find a lot of information about hydric soils and how to spot them (field identification) on the web - search 'hydric soils'. Often hydric soils will take on a rotten egg odor when they get saturated.

If that's the case you want to plant things that are comfortable with hydric soils. One of the best ways to identify those is to look around wetland areas for what is common, grows well, and will match with your needs. In a number of states those plants have been catalogued. You appear to be in VA (where I grew up) but I have no idea which region, so I'll pick the largest - Piedmont. There is a great publication titled "Common Wetland Plants of Northern VirginiaâÂÂs Piedmont" - link below. In that guide you will find an introduction to hydric soils on page 7, but more importantly you will find an extensive listing of various plant types that are common to the region and grow in various wetland environments. I suspect they are also common to the neighboring regions, such as upland Tidewater. It covers a very wide range of plants, from ferns, grasses, sedges, etc. to shrubs and trees. I suspect you'll be able to find a number of choices that would work in your situation.

Here is a link that might be useful: Common Wetland Plants of Northern Virginiaâs Piedmont

This post was edited by TXEB on Tue, Jun 25, 13 at 4:10

The purpose of a ditch alongside a road is to rapidly move water from the road to someplace else, usually a creek that eventually empties into a lake.If water stands in that ditch longer than 24 hours then the people responsible for maintaining it, around here the county road commission, need to come out and clean it out so the water will flow properly. You might also want to find out if it is permissible for you to plant anything that might impede the flow of water in that ditch.

kimm raises a good point. In most states drainage systems are overseen at the county level. In VA, if I remember correctly, the appropriate agency is the Department of Environmental Quality. You might check with them on your plan. Before you do that, however, check to see if there is a drainage easement for that area on your property. If there is, then definitely check with the county folks, if not then it may just be that it is your responsibility as part of the landscape.

In both MI and TX there are county drain commissioners, whose job is to maintain adequate drainage systems. I don't recall any such equivalent in VA, but it may be a local county issue.

I'm guessing the County Public Works Dept. is going to be the place to start unless you are in a city big enough to have its own public works dept. and road crews.

Thank you for your responses. I am so grateful to hear the advice of seasoned gardeners. TXEB, good guess - I'm in Piedmont (Richmond). I looked at your link and was happy that some of my plants were listed (ironweed, joe pye). I will move the pieris. Question: shall I do it now at the height of summer or can it wait until fall? The pieris seems to be doing well (new growth, no spots or leaf drop). The standing water photo was right after it rained; the ground absorbs the water quickly but at the lowest point it is squishy for a day or two. No stinky smell ever. I called it a ditch - it's not steep; rather, more like a depression in my yard. My garden is in the easement; what folks do around here in the easement is landscape (with lawn or plants) or hardscape (such as paved/gravel parking pad). My garden replaced lawn (or should I say weeds).

Here is a link that might be useful: photos of curb garden

Since I grew up in VA, I had to go look around for what and who. Probably the simplest and best overview I found for stormwater drainage systems is the one linked below from the City of Chesapeake. In VA those ditches along roadways fall under the general term of "BMP". What you may have with that ditch is what is termed a "grassed swale BMP". Maintenance of those, including the vegetation, is typically the responsibility of the landowner. From the publication you have options, and they specifically mention "wetland plants may also be used along the fringe of the BMP in areas where conditions are favorable".

Tox had it right - the typical agency in VA counties and cities is the department of Public Works, or the Department of Engineering.

Here is a link that might be useful: A Guide to Maintaining BMPs

nugget - I grew up in Bon Air.

In Michigan roadside ditches are maintained by the county road commission not the county drain commissioner, unless the county has combined those two entities.

If the wet spring conditions are what stresses that plant, I might wait till fall to transplant it.

I can't see your pics from where I am (my prob not yours) so I'm at a disadvantage. If you have a low spot and it's really yours to maintain you can always add soil, as long as you're not burying plants. I like the rain garden concept though, because it lets water soak in rather than run off which is good for the watershed in multiple ways. You just have to have the right plants that can tolerate the conditions.

kimm - might want to check your State code - see Public Act 40 of 1956.

Taken from one county Drain Commissioner website. (you'll see essentially the same in any MI county Drain Commissioner site):

"Responsibilities of the Drain Commissioner

The Drain Commissioner is responsible for the construction, operation and maintenance of designated County Drains.

The Drain Commissioner also serves on the County Parks and Recreation Board as well as on the Board of Public Works.

Under the Inland Lake Improvement Act, Part 309 of Act 451 of 1994, the Drain Commissioner serves as a member of any Lake Improvement Board.

The Drain Commissioner is also the County Enforcing Agent (CEA) under the Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control Act, Part 91 of Act 451 of 1994. That is, soil erosion and sedimentation control permits are issued through the Drain Commissioner's Office"

You may see the road guys may be doing the work, but the responsibility and authority rests with the Drain Commissioner.

edit - note added: in MI not all ditches along county roads are county drains. Form the same county DC website:
"There are many natural watercourses, private ditches, private pipelines, and roadside ditches that are not County Drains. The Drain Commissioner has virtually no jurisdiction on these systems."

This post was edited by TXEB on Wed, Jun 26, 13 at 11:19

Rats. I knew the pieris was misplaced to begin with - a friend gave it to me & as summer bore down I panicked: plants in containers + Richmond summers = brown & crunchy, as TXEB can attest. I love Bon Air...was there today as a matter of fact. toxcrusadr, I appreciate the plug for the rain garden concept: less runoff, better for the James River watershed. Thanks for the replies!