publication 426-043 Urban Water-Quality Management Rain Garden Plants Mike Andruczyk, Extension Agent, Chesapeake Lynnette Swanson, Extension Agent, NorfolkLaurie Fox, Horticulture Associate, Hampton Roads Agricultural Research and Extension CenterSusan French, Extension Agent, Virginia Beach Traci Gil land, Extension Agent, Portsmouth A rain garden is a landscaped area specially designed to co llect rainfall and storm-water runoff. The plants and soil in the rain garden clean pollutants from the water as it seeps into the ground and evaporates back into the atmosphere. For a rain garden to work, plants must be selected, installed, and maintained properly. Plant Selection • Choose plants tol erant of both occasional ooding as well as dry periods. • Choose noninvasive p lants that are adapted to the l ocal environment. • Choose a mixture of species. A good rule of thumb is one plant species for ev ery 10 to 20 square feet. For e xample – a 140-square-foot garden would have 7 to 14 different plant species. • Choose plants for v ertical layering – a mix of tall-, medium-, and l ow-growing species. Plant Installation • Install plants in their proper moisture zones (see Fig . 1 ). • Plant shrubs and perennials in groups of three to v e of the same species. Trees can be planted in groups or individually. • Plant taller and larger plants in the center or a t one end of the garden, depending on the views. • Plant shorter plants where they can be seen easily , around the garden edges, in f ront of larger plants, or underneath tallerplants. Figure 1. Rain Garden www.ext.vt.edu Produced by Communications and Marketing, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 2009 Virginia Cooperative Extension programs and employment are open to all, regardless of r ace, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, or marital or family status. An equal opportunity/affirmative action employer. Issued in furtherance of Cooperative Extension work, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Virginia State University, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture cooperating. RIck D. Rudd, Interim Director, Virginia Cooperative Extension, Virginia Tech , Blacksburg; Alma C. Hobbs, Administrator, 1890 Extension Program, Virginia State, Petersburg.
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Vermont; Rain Garden Plants - Virginia Cooperative Extension
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8/3/2019 Vermont; Rain Garden Plants - Virginia Cooperative Extension