So we have this one corner in our back yard that we want to turn into a small garden. Here is a photo:
We plan to put soil in that corner, more or less at the height of the white paint.
There is a wall there between our garden and the neighbor's garden, and the wall of our house. We have waterproofed these walls (that is what that white layer is), but are worried that if we don't waterproof the cement floor itself, wet soil will still sit there and water will creep up the walls somehow or otherwise cause problems. To alleviate we plan to put a layer of sand and gravel at the bottom but we just really don't want to uproot things a couple years down the road and/or damage the walls.
Should we waterproof that bottom part as well?
Best Answer
IMO it is never a great idea to pile soil against the walls of your house. It may lead to damage to walls as you mention, and/or water intrusion at the foundation. Buildings have rain gutters to direct water away from the foundation, you are now going to do the opposite.
I strongly suggest that you use a nice decorative pot or urn for your planting(s), so you will always be able to assess the conditions of the wall and foundation in the future.