Rain gardens are attractive, specially landscaped areas that help reduce stormwater runoff. A wide variety of different plants can be used, so each rain garden can be designed to complement an individual property. The rain garden pictured here demonstrates an informal style (photo courtesy of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency).
Union County, NJ – If you own a home in Rahway, you may be eligible to have a free rain garden planned and installed on your property by experts from Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Union County and the Water Resources Program. The offer applies only to properties that are located within the Robinson’s Branch Watershed in Rahway.
To apply and to find out if your property is eligible, visit water.rutgers.edu and click on “Rahway Rain Garden Project” or call Michele Bakacs, Environmental Agent with Rutgers Cooperative Extension at 732-398-5274.
“Rain gardens add an aesthetically pleasing feature to your yard while helping to reduce stormwater runoff. They can help reduce the risk of flooding in your neighborhood, so it’s a win-win all around,” said Union County Freeholder Linda Carter.
A rain garden is simply a shallow, attractively landscaped area built with special soils. They can be located on slight slopes as well as flat surfaces.
Rain gardens work by collecting excess stormwater from lawns, roofs, driveways and other paved surfaces. Rather than running off to overloaded storm drains, the excess water seeps naturally into the soil.
“An additional benefit is the natural filtration that soil provides,” Carter noted. “Rain gardens help contribute to improved water quality in our local waterways and beyond.”
The Rahway Rain Garden Project is part of a broader strategy to help reduce flooding and improve water quality in the Robinson’s Branch watershed, funded by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and administered by Rutgers Cooperative Extension and the City of Rahway.
Union County residents outside of the project area who would like to know more about rain gardens or who have a question about gardening can contact the free Garden Helpline, a Rutgers Extension service run by volunteer members of the Master Gardeners of Union County, at 908-654-9852 ormastergardeners@ucnj.org.
#
For more information on any Union County press release, please contact Sebastian D’Elia, Communications Director for the County of Union, or a designee listed at the top of this press release. Please join the County of Union online at www.ucnj.org, on Facebook at www.ucnj.org/facebook, and on Twitter athttp://twitter.com/countyofunionnj.