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|
| Title: |
Rain Gardens |
| Resource type: |
Article |
| Topics: |
Agriculture, Buildings, Ecosystems, Water
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| Keywords: |
landscape architecture, green building, water efficiency, storm gardens, design firms |
| Audience: |
All
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| Region: |
Minnesota Statewide, Outside Minnesota
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| Summary: |
Rain gardens are small, shallow low spots, planted with native perennials and shrubs, which catch and hold flowing rainwater and snowmelt - making them an aesthetic and economic stormwater management technique. |
| Content: |
Contrary to fears of damp basements and mosquito pools, emerging best practices for dealing with stormwater are moving away from pouring concrete and piping stormwater to water bodies, and toward slowing and soaking water into local soils. One of these emerging stormwater management techniques is the humble rain garden.
Rain gardens are small, shallow low spots, planted with native perennials and shrubs, which catch and hold flowing rainwater and snowmelt from lawns, driveways, parking lots, sidewalks, sump pumps, and roof downspouts. They are generally less than 100 sq. ft.; six-to-twelve inches deep; and hold water for under 4 days. Designed to absorb the first inch of rainfall, they can handle 80 - 90% of the rain that falls in Minnesota during a typical year.
Also known as urban storm water gardens, water-quality gardens, mini-wetlands and small infiltration basins, rain gardens are a well studied and effective landscape element easily created on a large scale by landscaping firms and on a small scale by homeowners. They are colorful and require only routine weeding and maintenance once established.
Benefits behind rain gardens include:
* Lower costs to government and businesses than for traditional storm water infrastructure such as detention basins and curb and gutter.
* Slower and decreased overland water flow, resulting in lower soil erosion, stream silting, bank erosion, and improved water quality of local lakes and streams.
* Greater recharge of local groundwater than allowed by grass and level gardens.
* Pollutant trapping and destruction by soil organisms.
* Restoration of native ecologic functioning, increased biological diversity, and elimination of pesticides, herbicides and fertilizer.
* Beauty.
Once merely an experimental attempt by the City of Maplewood to deal with flooding in a two-block area in 1996, rain gardens in Minnesota are proliferating in public and private settings. For example, Maplewood offers residents rain gardens in lieu of curb and gutter, in order to add neighborhood beauty and to cut storm water costs.
For an extensive list of garden locations, pictures, installation manuals, plant lists, background articles, and rain garden experts, see below:
* The City of Burnsville rain garden project with photos and description at http://www.landandwater.com/features/vol48no5/vol48no5_2.html
* The City of Maplewood's web site (http://www.ci.maplewood.mn.us/; search for: rainwater gardens) has a location map and pictures of rain gardens, planting plans for 7 types of gardens, an installation guide, a long plant list, a planting and care guide, and focus group reviews of gardens.
* The South Zumbro Watershed Partnership ( http://www.co.olmsted.mn.us/departments/environment/index.asp ), based in Rochester, MN, produced a 21-page "Rain Garden Landscape Design Manual"; copies may be available from 507/285-8339.
* The Wisconsin DNR has an 8-page introduction to rain gardens and a 32-page "How-to Manual for Homeowners" at http://clean-water.uwex.edu/pubs/home.htm
* The MN DNR has an informative article, names of businesses with rain gardens, and more at http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/volunteer/mayjun04/raingardens.html
* Specialists in rain gardens include MMC Associates, St. Paul (Debbie Meister: meisterd@qwest.net; see http://mmcaction.com/debbie_meister.php); MN DNR, New Ulm (Cathi Fouchi: cathi.fouchi@state.mn.us); Barr Engineering, Minneapolis (Fred Rozumalski: frozumalski@barr.com); Close Landscape Architecture, St. Paul (Bob Close: bclose@closelandarch.com); Great River Greening, St. Paul (651/665-9500); Emmons and Olivier Resources, Lake Elmo (Gary Oberts: goberts@eorinc.com); Bonestroo Rosene Anderlik, St. Paul (Greg Halverson: ghalverson@bonestroo.com); SEH, Inc. of St. Paul (Andy Lamberson: alamberson@sehinc.com), which has formed a low-impact development team.
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| Suggested by: |
Philipp Muessig
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| Added: |
06/25/04 |
| Updated: |
01/21/10 |
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