TX: Rain Gardens Fact Sheet

HC-GFS-08-001 Harris County Office 3033 Bear Creek Drive, Houston, Texas 77084 281. 855. 5600 • http://harris-tx. tamu. edu/hort GARDENING FACT SHEET What is a Rain Garden? A rain garden is a garden designed to capture some of the runoff from rooftops,... More

HC-GFS-08-001 Harris County Office 3033 Bear Creek Drive, Houston, Texas 77084 281. 855. 5600 • http://harris-tx. tamu. edu/hort GARDENING FACT SHEET What is a Rain Garden? A rain garden is a garden designed to capture some of the runoff from rooftops, driveways, and lawns, providing a way to slow down and soak up excess rainwater rather than letting it run into storm drains. Since Harris County annually receives more than 50 inches of rain in some areas, stormwater management is essential. Some rainwater soaks into the ground, nourishing our lawns and gardens, but much falls on roofs, driveways and other impervious surfaces. That water flows into neighborhood storm sewers, then into local creeks, bayous, estuaries, bays and, eventually, the Gulf of Mexico. A rain garden is a type of “bio-retention” system, although “bio-detention” is a better description since the purpose is to detain rainwater for a short time rather than retain it permanently. Some water in the rain garden will Less