What is a rain garden? 

The purpose of a rain garden is to collect runoff water that would otherwise cause erosion.  The plants in a rain garden are tolerant to both excess water and dry conditions.  The garden will contain the runoff until it is naturally absorbed back into the environment. 

Why create a rain garden?

• They can help with ground water issues

• They can fix drainage & make a beautiful space

Where would I plant a rain garden?

The ideal location for a rain garden is along a natural runoff path or near some impermeable coverage such as a parking area, patio, downspouts or your home – basically anywhere that there’s a lot of runoff or water accumulation. 

How should I construct a rain garden?

Place it an area where rain water is naturally channeled and that tends to accumulate sitting water. Typically the soil would contain 60% sand, 15% top soil 25% compost. Use any plants that can tolerate both wet and dry conditions. It should keep the water from running off and eroding the ground but should be built so that the water can be absorbed into the ground fairly quickly.  The objective is not to create a pond. It shouldn’t be very deep – less than a foot – so there is more ground to absorb the water. Keep it free of weeds, debris and dead leaves which will impair the water flow.

Rain Garden Plants

Here are some suggestions of what to plant in your rain garden:

• Cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis)

• Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia fulgida)

• Swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata)

• Swamp mallow (Hibiscus moscheutos)

• Joe Pye weed (Eupatorium)

• Sedges (Carex)

• Bluestar (Amsonia)

• Turtlehead (Chelone)

For more plant suggestions go to http://raingardenalliance.org/planting/plantlist