Rain gardens

A rain garden is a depression in the terrain designed to receive, store and filter rainwater run-off and is also designed as a specially planted area (see figures 1 and 2). The rain garden capacity can be increased by connecting a soakaway, either before or after the rain garden. After digging out the rain garden, it is important to replace the top soil, possibly with one-third sand mixed in, to ensure good infiltration and plant growth. Choosing plants is difficult because rain gardens can become very dry (because of good drainage) but also very wet (because of accumulated rainwater) Rain gardens need the same amount of maintenance as other garden flower beds. Examples from America show that rain gardens can be an attractive supplementary element in a private garden.

Figure 1: Rain garden (Photo from www.artfulrainwaterdesign.com)