Small Urban Space Rain Gardens

January 29, 2010 by

flower-after-rain

Rain gardens aren’t just for homeowners with large tracts of land.  A rain garden planted in a small urban area can make a big difference in the water quality and environment of its surrounding area.

When it rains in densely populated urban areas, impervious surfaces such as roads, sidewalks, and roofs not planted with gardens, trees, or turf, produce runoff that goes straight into storm sewers.  Some storm drains carry water to treatment plants, while water from other storm drains washes directly into lakes, rivers, and oceans.  Any time a large influx of water pours into an aquatic ecosystem, the balance of oxygen and nutrients is disturbed, causing death to aquatic life, and other disruptions of the ecosystem.

Rain-Garden1
Photo, City of Kingston, Melbourne, Australia

In addition to impervious surfaces made of concrete or asphalt, many urban areas have vacant, muddy lots.  Apartment buildings might have courtyards of hard-packed dirt that will turn to mud when it rains.

Planting a rain garden, even a small one, can help divert water and keep it within the aquifer and out of streams and lakes.  Rain gardens can be beautiful and beneficial additions to urban properties.  Here’s how to plant a rain garden in a small space:

Urban_Rain_Garden_at_Chelsea_Show
Small urban rain garden at 2008 Chelsea Flower Show

Rain Garden Basics
Whether the garden is in a small space of land between a building and a sidewalk, or part of a larger yard, there are a fundamentals to rain garden construction that apply to all garden design.

• Rain gardens need to be constructed to drain within four hours of a 1” rainfall.  This is to protect the health of the plants while absorbing the water.
• Plants in rain gardens need to be able to experience wide variations of wet and dry conditions. For this reason, native plants work best for rain gardens, because they are well-adapted to local conditions.  Favorable plants for rain gardens will vary from region to region.
• The soil in which the garden is planted must be lightweight and porous, so it will likely need to be amended prior to planting.  Leaf compost, sand, vermiculite, and loamy soil additions are good mixtures for rain gardens.
• For the garden to be most beneficial, it needs to be located in an area where water naturally collects, or drains from a downspout or gutter. To select the best place (if there is a choice), observe the area after a heavy rain.

Eupatorium_purpureum
Eupatorium is suitable for rain gardens.

Plants for Small Rain Gardens
Many plants suitable for rain gardens are large and rangy.  Small, urban gardens require more compact species and dwarf cultivars of larger native plants.  Here are some “best bets” for rain gardens in small spaces.

• Campanula (bellflower)
• Carex (sedge)
• Lobelia (cardinal flower)
• Eupatorium (DWARF Joe Pye weed and boneset)
• Ruellia ‘Katie’
• Garden phlox
• Baptisia  (false indigo)
• Liatris (blazing star)
• Solidago (goldenrod)
• Aster
• Tradescantia (spiderwort)
• Helenium (sneezeweed)

There are numerous trees and shrubs that are also at home in the rain garden, but most grow too large to be part of a smaller garden. With smaller plants, and careful attention to soil amendments, a small rain garden in an urban space can be a beautiful and ecologically beneficial addition to the landscape.
___________________________________________________________________________

This guest post was contributed by Matt Cross, owner of RainWater-Barrels, whose rain harvesting equipment is produced using sustainable and socially responsible business practices.  They are committed to educating consumers on the environmental benefits of rainwater collecting.

9 Comments »

  1. Urban Rain Gardens at UrbanGardensWeb | RainWater-Barrels.com Pingback said:

    […] from UrbanGardensWeb has featured a post written by us about planting a rain garden in small urban spaces. The post explains why urban areas help channel water into storm sewers instead of being absorbed […]

    — February 1, 2010 @ 01:24

  2. Catherine Wachs said:

    Thanks for showing how even small urban spaces can be helpful in contributing to better water quality. One piece of information did not jibe with my own experiences planting rain gardens:

    ” For the garden to be most beneficial, it needs to be located in an area where water naturally collects”

    The best place for a rain garden is uphill from the flooded area. That’s because the area where the water collects is probably too dense to drain, or perhaps there is rock there. Of course, downspouts, as you mention, are the best place to collect water nearby or into a barrel.

    — February 6, 2010 @ 15:13

  3. urban garden house melds indoors and out Pingback said:

    […] high retaining wall at the rear that becomes a pebbled waterfall opening up to the sky. Below, a rainwater-collecting pond envelops the living […]

    — February 23, 2010 @ 13:02

  4. Conrad said:

    Shameless plug alert: I have a lot of customers who have subsequently made rain gardens after having purchased a rain chain (I sell rain chains @ Rain Chains Direct). They make a great water feature to incorporate into the garden. And if feeding a rain chain directly into a garden is not a possibility, you can use a rain barrel which will allow you to capture the water as it drains, so that it may be stored and used for other things like watering plants, etc.

    Here is a blog piece I wrote about integrating rain chains into water harvesting systems: http://www.rainchainsdirect.com/blogs/rain-chains-blog/1791202-integrating-rain-chains-into-water-harvesting-systems

    — August 24, 2010 @ 21:26

  5. Unlock iPhone said:

    The best place for a rain garden is uphill from the flooded area. That�s because the area where the water collects is probably too dense to drain, or perhaps there is rock there. Of course, downspouts, as you mention, are the best place to collect water nearby or into a barrel.

    — April 22, 2011 @ 09:44

  6. Ben Woodward said:

    I have a rain garden and I love it. I think it’s a great landscaping feature, in addition to all the benefits it gives to the ecosystem. If you’ve been thinking about making one, go ahead and give it a try. I think you’ll like it.

    — August 16, 2011 @ 18:16

  7. MONA said:

    I also have a rain garden and i love it, thanks for sharing this post.

    — October 26, 2012 @ 23:10

  8. NYC Rooftop Farm Classroom Cultivates Minds - Urban Gardens Pingback said:

    […] technologies such as hydroponic vegetable farming, aquaponics, raised soil beds, solar panels,  rainwater catchment system, weather station, wind energy, worm composting, and a kitchen […]

    — January 14, 2014 @ 17:32

  9. Week 6 – Sustainability Journal Pingback said:

    […] Small Urban Space Rain Gardens […]

    — May 29, 2016 @ 03:39

RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URL

Leave a comment

The freshest innovative and eco-friendly designs, trends, and ideas for urban gardens and stylish small places.

Visit Robin Horton @UrbanGardens's profile on Pinterest.

Discover more from Urban Gardens

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading