Rain Gardens, Green Gardening Trend

Rain gardens have their own water supply. The water in your yard collects in certain areas, where the grass and weeds grow taller, causing you to conjecture that your garden plants will grow better there also. Ah ha, you are beginning to plan your own rain garden.

 According to Wikipedia.org,

‘A rain garden is a planted depression that allows rainwater runoff from impervious urban areas like roofs, driveways, walkways, and compacted lawn areas the opportunity to be absorbed.”

Another boon . . .? Rain gardens don’t require watering, fertilizer or weeding. Native plants are recommended for rain gardens and they are hardy plants that require less care. So you can have a new easy care wildflower garden. Native ornamental grasses and sedges are combined with perennial wildflowers in a rain garden so it will have a strong root mass to avoid erosion and prevent weeds. Rain gardens survive dry periods and droughts.

Rain gardens have many other benefits. With a rain garden there will be less standing water and flooding. Rain gardens also help to control erosion and save land. The plants’ root systems redistribute moisture and improve infiltration. Rain garden plants also return water vapor to the atmosphere in transpiration.

As much as 40% of people’s water usage is for the yard or garden. Using the rainwater already in your yard for your garden will help to conserve water considerably. You can also direct rainspouts toward your rain garden and use rain chains.

You can find books, seeds, plants and rain garden supplies at Amazon.com. The Rain Garden Network also sells laminated guides to help people create their own rain gardens. The laminated guides are: How to Build a Rain Garden Step by Step Guide, a Plants for Rain Gardens Guide and a Season to Season Guide to Rain Garden Maintenance for Midwest, Northwest or Southeast areas of the U.S.  

www.RainGardenNetwork.com/publications.htm