From: landscape-solutions-for-you.com: How Close To Plant Oleander To Septic Tank by: Kimberly Hi, Kimberly here from landscape solutions for you. Thank you for asking the question on your Oleander. This is a great question that has been asked before. Oleander is a sub-tropical to tropical plant that needs good drainage and a fair amount of sunlight. The roots will spread, but can be suited for border shrubs and foundations. As far as being planted close to your septic tank and leach field. I would recommend plant the Oleander about five to ten feet away from both if possible. This is a safety measure to make sure your Oleander grows healthy. The Oleander is a beautiful plant specimen but poisonous to humans and animals. One should never burn Oleander branches, as they are toxic. If you have the space, go ahead and plant Oleander five to ten feet away. You can add some organic mushroom compost to the soil. This is a wonderful organic fertilizer that will last up to one year. The best of luck to you and let us know how your Oleander does. You can also plant Oleander, depending on the variety, in a container. Thanks again for asking the question and feel free to ask anytime. Have a great day! Kimberly

Not sure what I said but the valve is black plastic: both the part that turns and the housing that is exposed. Regardless, the technique for getting the penetrant to the right spot is a good one. I will give it a try. The NDS sheet says that to 'remove inner stem' to allow all the ports to be connected. I assume (cannot see without digging) that one is to the tank, two to the leach lines and one is capped off. I I pull the stem, flow depends on gravity to take from the tank and let it take the path of least resistance to either or both lines. They do not say how to remove the stem but I clamped on to the 'handle' with some pliers and could not pull it out. Again, I am going slow and did not pull like my life depended upon getting it out! Afraid to break the plastic handle. Maybe I am making a mountain from a molehill but I do not need another PhD in the school of hard knocks. I got too many already...

Contact your local conservation district and/or county planner or whoever permits septic systems. They can give you approximate information on your soils and why the perc test failed, which to me is the first issue in fixing your septic system. The current leach field has to be replaced, and there should have been a planned replacement area shown in the permit for your original septic system, although this may have grown over with trees since (these trees could also be plugging the existing leach field and contributing to your problem). The perc test may have failed because the ground is too sandy/gravelly and the sewage water will drain to ground water too quickly, contaminating the ground water and nearby domestic wells. Or, it may have failed due to too much clay and the water won't soak into the soil, backing up the system (or even causing your current problem). A "standard" system can be modified relatively easily to deal with sandy/gravelly soil, clay is a bit harder to deal with but can be done. Otherwise you could go to very high tech systems, such as an incinerator, or use pumping stations. A raised leach field may also be an option and would be preferable to a high tech system. This might even work on top of the old leach field, and can be landscaped as part of the yard making it impossible to tell that you have a leach field and not a decorative hill in your yard. If space is limited, use the septic "coffins" rather than perforated pipes. They look like slotted coffin lids, but require much less linear space than perforated pipes. Your conservation district and septic permitting agency can give you information on all these things and help you figure out the best way to go, then consult with a contractor who works with septic systems to make sure you've considered all the angles.

The EPA and the CDC recommend 50 ft distance for a water well to a leach field. So if you are worried about contaminants to the corn roots that would probably be considered a safe distance. You should also consider that birds and other animals will deposit contaminants in your corn field. I would be more concerned about the vegetable roots getting into the leach lines. Three feet away would probably be a good distance if you worry about that. Or if you don't do a lot of worrying just plant non root vegetables ( no onions, carrots, potatoes) and enjoy the bountiful harvest. This post was edited by zeuspaul on Sun, Jan 25, 15 at 12:17