Rain Garden – Environmentally Sound and Visually Appealing
Homeowners in areas where water use is limited are turning to rain water gardens to provide beauty in their garden. A rain garden is saucer or bowl shaped, filled with loose soil and planted with native perennial plants. It is located to take advantage of storm water runoff from the roof or concrete drive or parking lot.
As more concrete is poured runoff from storm water has become an increasing problem. Runoff can damage foundations, cause erosion of top soil and cause sinkholes. Valuable water becomes a hazard rather than a benefit.
Rain gardens take advantage of the water that would be wasted by funneling it into the depression that forms the garden. Rain is a natural part of nature – storm water runoff is man-made and like many man made creations can be damaging to the environment.
Across the country people are joining together to create rain water gardens that take advantage of water that would be otherwise wasted. There are organizations devoted to planning and building rain gardens but many homeowners develop their own simple method of using free rainwater as a natural resource.
Creating a rain garden may seem like a small thing but if you watch the amount of water cascading from your roof or downspout during a hard rain you will quickly see how much water is being wasted. Your rain water garden will have the same appearance as any garden area you plant. You aren’t creating a swamp or bog; you are collecting precious water and using it to provide moisture to your garden.
To create a the garden choose a location no less than 10 feet from the foundation of your home. Dig until the surface is about 4-8 inches lower than the surrounding ground surface. When choosing the size of a rain garden experts advice making your choice as a percentage of the surface that provides the runoff water.
The percentage used depends on the type of soil in your location. For black, loamy soil you might plan a rain garden that is 30-40% of the square footage of that roof. If your soil is sandy the percentage would be 20% and for heavy clay soil you might go as high a 50% of the space causing the runoff. An oval design works best.
Native perennial plants work best in a rain garden because they are ideally suited to the climate conditions in your area. Avoid plants that require constant moisture to thrive. Many wildflowers do well in frequent boggy soil conditions but also survive period of drought. Those conditions describe a rain garden.
Rain water gardens have benefits beyond growing plants or channeling runoff of storm water. Distributing the water through a garden provides the filtering necessary to remove oil and grease from parking lots and driveways and to remove other pollutants before they flow into a storm drain.
These plantings do require maintenance, especially in the first year or two they are established. They need watering through dry seasons to encourage deep root growth. Once the plants are well established the garden will need little maintenance but may require additional watering during period of excessive heat or drought.
A good maintenance method for a rain garden is to lay soaker hoses in a pattern in the planting bed and cover it with a good layer of mulch. Soaker hoses release water slowly in a dripping fashion that send moisture to the roots of the plant and avoids wasting water. The mulch will keep the soil from drying out for days after watering and is another environmentally friendly practice. An added benefit is the reduction of weeds growing in a well mulched ran garden bed.
Many homeowners notice areas of their lawn where water gathers after a rain. If that boggy area is low enough that rainwater runoff is pooling there, you have a natural rain garden site. Take advantage of the natural slope and trade a muddy spot for an attractive and environmentally sound rain water garden.
