A Rain Garden Update

Someone told me that they heard that we have had over 6 inches of rain this May. The most remarkable part is that we have not been having any of the horrible weather that has been plaguing many other parts of the country. According to our local NBC station, it is only 0.04 inches from the fifth wettest year on record for this area—and Alberto may have some contributions tomorrow and Thursday.

I will be building a new rain garden by the pawpaw outside the kitchen window, based on how the rain sluices to the edge of that bed through the new and vastly improved downspout to the north. Perhaps not so mysteriously, the basement seems less humid.

Photograph of runoff from new downspout into garden. — The new and improved downspout on the north side of the house dumps a lot of water into the grass and the southeast side of the pawpaw patch. Photographed on May 3, 2018.

Meanwhile, in the front yard, the rain garden has been lapping up all the water from the new eastern downspouts. I am not sure that I will put in a trench for the northeast downspout; the rain seems to be finding its way into the garden without it. There is a thicket of nannyberries and their roots to contend with if I do decide to put in a trench.

Photograph showing spring growth of rain garden. — The north end of the rain garden. The bright green ferns are lady ferns. The redbud bloomed briefly, and then put all its energy into leaves. The lavender flowers to the right are woodland phlox. Photographed on May 23, 2018.

Everything survived the winter except for one Rudbeckia triloba, which I suspect got eaten by rabbits. There do appear to be seedlings, however.

Photograph showing spring growth and flowers in rain garden. — The south end of the rain garden. The spikes are Iris virginica; the white flowers are Canada anemone; nested within these is a brand-new Clethra alnifolia—really! It has a nursery tag. To the left is Eupatorium rugosum; the somewhat grassier plants are Siberian irises, and the mauvy pink flowers behind those are wild geraniums. Photographed on May 28, 2018.

I dug this garden, so I really should have a good feel for how gravelly it is—but I was amazed at the rocks when I dug the hole for the Clethra. I vividly recall the weight of the soil, and this soil is well hydrated, so it’s even heavier.

Photograph from the top of newly planted Clethra. — Clethra alnifolia. Photographed on May 27, 2018.

I decided to sift the gravel and small rocks out, as I needed them to complete the runoff trough for the northern downspout. I looked for and removed the earthworms so they wouldn’t get beaten up in the process.

Photograph showing rocks and gravel in compost seive; the smallest gravel passed through. — There were an awful lot of small rocks and gravel in each little load. Photographed on May 24, 2018.

Since the Clethra went in, we have had a few days of near-record high temperatures, so I am watching closely. We won’t even talk about the humidity. (Sub)tropical storm Alberto will be bringing us temperature relief and rain. Tomorrow.