HOME & GARDEN

TRain garden in Kansas City, MO. Design by David Dods, URS.Rain Gardens
By Stacie Soucek
Photograph by Astra Communications

The snow has melted at last, and the warm weather storms are looming – likely contributing to drenched yards, clogged sewers, flooded basements and swampy neighborhoods. Armed with a shovel and gardening gloves, take the initiative to protect your yard with a clever new concept – a rain garden.

What is a rain garden?
A rain garden is a bowl- or saucer-shaped dip in the yard designed to soak up excess water from roofs, buildings, driveways and sidewalks. This rain-loving landscape – naturally the ideal habitat for birds, dragonflies and butterflies – is filled with wildflowers and vegetation that can tolerate moisture and resist drought. Native plants typically chosen for a rain garden range from rain lilies (zephyranthes) to sweet grass (hierochloe odorata) to winterberry shrubs (ilex verticillata).

How do they work?
After a rain shower, the patch fills with a few inches of water that would normally flow to sewers and storm drains. The carefully arranged plants embrace the water and hold it in place, allowing the ground to gradually filter it. Gallons of water that might have headed down the street to a storm drain, gathering filth along the way, will be channeled into a controlled environmentally friendly garden instead.

Why are they important?
Sewers can handle rain water, but excess storm water can become a problem. Cities and suburbs have blossomed in northeast Ohio, replacing forests, agricultural land and wildlife environments. Unfortunately, storm water overflow from these developed areas has increased chances for flooding and drainage problems. Storm water flows with pollutants, such as sediment, metals and phosphorous from urban streets, fluids from cars and chemicals from treated lawns, into our city water systems. An individual rain garden may seem slight, but collectively, they have the potential to prevent overflow fiascos and improve the quality of our drinking water.

How do I start my own?
A rain garden can curve, twist and stretch depending on the acreage available for landscaping, but the average rain garden will be small yet significant.

First, determine where water from downspouts, gutters and impervious surfaces flows naturally. Your rain garden should be a space that is several feet to yards in length and width, and at least 20 feet away from the house to prevent damage to your foundation.

Then, design and construct your rain garden with the highest water-capturing potential in mind by digging a shallow nine-inch deep basin sloping gently towards the lawn on all sides.

Most rain gardens are simply depressions in the ground with no need for expensive pipes or special soil. However, if your soil is too heavy or has a high clay consistency, you may choose to dig about two feet deeper. Fill the hole with a mixture of sand, topsoil and compost, and line the planting area with a couple inches of wood mulch. If your yard slopes on a side or two, use rocks, bricks and thicker plants to act as a water barrier.

Finally, the fun part: choosing which types of plants you’d like to incorporate into your new rain-catching landscape. Plant heights, arrangements and features are completely up to you. Want to attract butterflies? Add orange coneflowers. Love the look of whimsical wildflowers? Throw in some monkey flowers. Seedlings should be planted at least 12 inches apart, with flood-tolerant species toward the middle and drought-tolerant species toward the edges of the garden.

Low-maintenance tips:
At first, quench thirsty new plants with one inch of water per week for a couple of months. Once they’re growing and flourishing, your plants will thrive on their own, without the need for additional watering. Fertilizing is unnecessary, but occasional weed-plucking will help keep your garden healthy and beautiful.

Welcome the rain & new wildlife to your yard:
Sit back and enjoy watching new species of butterflies, birds and insects live in the environment you’ve created. Add new plants periodically to make it your own. Don’t be afraid to experiment with color. What a conversation piece for neighborhood dog-walkers!

For more information about rain gardens, visit www.raingardennetwork.com or visit your favorite area garden center.

Popular Plants For Rain Gardens

Wildflowers
Flat-topped aster, anise hyssop, turtlehead, grass-leaved goldenrod, blue flag iris, wild bergamot, black-eyed Susan, rain lily, orange coneflower, monkey flower

Grasses
Big bluestem, sweet grass, soft rush, wool grass, Indian grass, prairie cord grass

Shrubbery
Specked alder, silky dogwood, winterberry, highbush cranberry

Trees
Yellow birch, red maple, river birch

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