She Was Tired Of Rain Water Turning Her Lawn Into A Muddy Mess, So She Tried This Simple And Cheap Fix

It's easy to assume that fixing a gutter runoff problem means installing some complicated drainage system. Sometimes, though, the simplest solution is just to stop letting all that water hit bare soil in the first place. The river rocks give the runoff a tough surface to land on, while the surrounding stones help keep everything contained. And because Melissa allowed the rocks to taper naturally into the wood chips, the finished result doesn't scream "I had a gutter problem."

It just looks like another little feature in the garden. There's also something satisfying about using materials you already have. The extra landscaping rocks that had been sitting around Melissa's property suddenly had a purpose, while one inexpensive bag of river rocks helped solve a problem that had been coming back every time it rained.

It may not be the biggest landscaping project you'll ever tackle. But that's exactly what makes it appealing. A messy flower bed, a troublesome downspout and a little bit of runoff suddenly became a project that took very little time and effort. And the next time the clouds opened up, Melissa didn't have to worry about racing outside to replace all that missing mulch. The water finally had somewhere to go.