Rain Gardens

The young native plants begin to grow. Rain water from the downspouts will flow directly to the rain garden. Rain gardens are just what they sound like -- gardens that soak up rain water, mainly from your roof, but also from your driveway and lawn. They are landscaped areas planted with wild flowers and other native vegetation to replace areas of lawn.

Compared to a patch of conventional lawn, a rain garden allows about 30 percent more water to soak into the ground. By reducing the amount of water that enters the local storm drain systems, rain gardens can also reduce the chances of local flooding, and reduce bank and shoreline damage where storm drains empty into streams and lakes.

This rain garden is two years old. Weeds have a hard time growing. Birds and butterflies are regular visitors to the garden. A rain garden is an infiltration device in which stormwater runoff is the main water supply for the plantings. The garden is planted at the end of a downspout or at a low area where water collects, like a drainage swale. The plants used in the garden are selected based on site-specific growing conditions, such as the amount of sunlight available and the underlying soil conditions. During typical rains, the gardens infiltrate most of the runoff generated from the area and use it to sustain the plantings. As such, pollutants are removed as well.

A flourishing rain garden.

People in many parts of the country are starting to build rain gardens in their yards. They are also promoting their use in other locations, such as neighborhood parks. For more information about the benefits of rain gardens and details on how to build one in your yard, follow the link here to download a color brochure from University of Wisconisin - Extension. (The link will take you out of this web site.)