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Planting your rain garden Choices, choices ! Low to high density Groomed to natural Theme gardens Butterfly garden Evergreen garden Native plants Cool colors Warm colors Limited only by your imagination! Your rain garden will be… Very wet sometimes… Your rain garden will be…
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Theme gardens • Butterfly garden • Evergreen garden • Native plants • Cool colors • Warm colors • Limited only by your imagination!
Your rain garden will be… Very wet sometimes…
Your rain garden will be… Very dry sometimes…
Native Species!! • Accustomed to the climate • Low maintenance! • Beautiful selections
Choosing Plants • Tolerant of moisture and drought • Adapted to site conditions • Moisture levels within rain garden vary depending on location
50’ x 50’ Excellent Specimen Single or multi-stemmed Papery bark ‘Heritage’, ‘Duraheat’ Grows fast, tolerate very wet to average conditions River BirchBetula nigra
Redbud • Cercis canadensis • Blooms early spring, deciduous • Lives ~ 20 yrs. • Sun, well drained soil • Fuller in sun
Redbud ‘Forest Pansy’ ‘Royal White’
Fringetree • Chionanthus virginicus • To 20’ x 20’ • Sun – lt. shade • Moist soil • Late season leaf spot • Blue fruit on female trees
Shrubs and small trees Red maple Elderberry Strawberry bush
Southern Wax MyrtleMyrica cerifera • 10’-15’ x 10’-15’ • Berries are valuable to birds (female plants) • Large screen, pruned hedge, • Dwarf forms exist • Often multi-stemmed tree • Exceptionally tough
Sweet PepperbushClethra alnifolia • Native, deciduous shrub • Sun – part shade • Well drained or moist soil • Cultivars: • ‘Hummingbird’, ‘16 Candles’ • dwarf white, 3’ x 6’ • ‘Ruby Spice’ • upright pink, 8’ x 5’ • Blooms in June-July, exceptional fragrance • Yellow fall color
Sweet Pepperbush ‘Ruby Spice’ ‘Sixteen Candles’
Virginia SweetspireItea virginica • Deciduous shrub • Sun to part shade • Wet to dry soil • Cultivars: • ‘Henry’s Garnet’ • 4’-6’ x 4’-6’ • ‘Little Henry’, ‘Merlot’ • dwarf - 3’ x 3’ • Flowers in June • Burgundy autumn color holds till Dec. • Very moisture tolerant
6’ x 6’ Cut back to 1’ every year in Feb/March Bright purple berries in autumn - loved by birds Very Fast Grower BeautyberryCallicarpa americana
Asclepias species • Butterflyweed • Asclepias tuberosa • 2’ – 3’ tall and wide • Blooms in spring/early summer, orange • Sun to light shade • Drought tolerant, good drainage • Swamp milkweed • Asclepias incarnata • 3’ tall and wide • Spring/early summer flowers, pink or white • Sun to part shade • Moisture tolerant
Orange ConeflowerRudbeckia fulgida • Tough spreading perennial • Yellow flowers all summer, 3’ tall • Sun, moist to average soil • Low mat of semi-evergreen foliage in winter • Leave seed heads in winter for birds
Panic Grass • Panicum virgatum • ‘Shenandoah’ • 3’ x 2’, burgundy • ‘Northwind’ • 4’ x 2’, upright • Moist or dry soils • Sun to light shade ‘Shenandoah’ ‘Northwind’
Joe Pye Weed • Eupatorium fistulosum, E. dubium • Large spreading perennial • Moist soil, sun • Rose-mauve flowers in late summer • 6’-8’ in flower • Excellent nectar source
Goldenrod • Many species • Solidago rugosa • ‘Fireworks’ • Late summer – fall flowers • Moist to average, sun
Rose Mallow • Hibiscus moscheutos • Extremely sturdy, clumping perennial • 4’-6’ tall and wide • Wet to moist soil, sun • Pink or white flowers in summer • Dies back completely in winter
Cardinal Flower • Lobelia cardinalis • Sun – pt. shade • Wet to avg. soil • Flowers lt. summer, fall, 3’-4’ tall in flower • Short lived soil, self seeds • Do not mulch over crown in winter • Hummingbirds, butterflies
Diversity • Great habitat • Reduces pest impact • Long flowering season
Right plants in the right place Oval Rain Garden 1 5 6 4 2 3
Wetness zones Dry Average Wet Redbud Muhly Grass Butterflyweed Orange Coneflower Fringetree Orange Coneflower Blue Star False Indigo Washington Hawthorn Possumhaw River Birch Swamp Milkweed Turtlehead River Oats
Laying out your garden Formal grid… or freestyle…
Good planting technique • Water plants while in the container • Keep shaded until planting
Good planting technique • Dig a hole at least twice as wide as root ball or container • Rough up the sides of the hole
Good planting technique • Be kind to roots… • Gently remove plant from container
Good planting technique • Place root collar level with soil • Backfill loose soil with no air pockets • Tamp down firmly
Mulching • Removes pollution • Retains moisture • Prevents erosion
Mulching • Mulch 2-4 inches • Use dense mulch • Replace periodically
Do I need to water? • After planting, yes! • First season, yes! • In droughts, yes! • In rain, no!