DIY Rain Garden: A Beautiful, Eco-Friendly Backyard Solution

A Multi-Function Garden Enhancement

With spring in full swing, now is the perfect time to consider integrating a rain garden into your backyard — an aesthetic landscape addition designed to capture and absorb rainwater so that it doesn’t flow into storm drains. Why is this important? Because it helps to prevent localized flooding and reduces pollutants from ending up in freshwater — and your municipal water supply. It also provides habitat for wildlife and creates a lovely oasis in your yard. Overall, it’s a low-maintenance and eco-friendly method for adding beauty and function to your outdoor space.

Will It Work In My Yard?

Even if you live in an arid climate with low levels of precipitation, you can still create a rain garden to catch excess water. The key is to look for impermeable surfaces — roofs, sidewalks, driveways, patios — that can collect and divert rainwater towards your garden. Select an area to build your rain garden that is around 10-15 percent of the size of your roof, sidewalk, driveway, etc. The location will need to be downslope from your collection surface to easily funnel the water.

If you live in an area with high levels of precipitation, you may want to opt for a larger and deeper rain garden to accommodate the extra water. Moreover, it’s best to select a drainage area that is at least 10 feet from your house and neighbors to avoid water damage to the foundation.

A rain garden can be set up either in a sunny or shaded area. Select the plants you will be using according to their light requirements and their location. The garden can be built in any type of soil, but well-draining soil works best. If you have soil with a high clay content, digging down deep and then filling with better soil is ideal.

Whether or not you need to water the plants in the rain garden will depend on the type of plants selected, drought conditions, season, and the amount of precipitation your garden receives.

Design Elements

While there isn’t a set design for how your rain garden should look, do take into account the landscape, climate, and precipitation levels for your yard, as noted above. For heavy rains, your garden should be larger, while drought-prone areas can opt for something smaller.

The depth of your garden depends on your soil and how much the water will sink down within twenty-four hours. You can test this by digging a small hole about the size and depth of a coffee can in the area you plan to establish your rain garden. Then, fill it with water and measure how much it drains in an hour. If it drops a half an inch, you can estimate that it will drain 1-inch every two hours or 12-inches total for 24 hours. This means you should dig your rain garden down 12-inches.

Do not locate it near septic systems or utilities that may be underground. It’s important to create an overflow area that borders the rain garden for heavy rains, such as a lawn or gravel border.

For directing the water into the rain garden, you can create a river rock channel from the source of the collected water or bury a 4-inch PVC pipe if you would like underground water diversion. At the entrance of the garden, you can add a small pile of decorative rocks that will help to moderate the flow of water so it doesn’t wash away young plants during heavy rains.

Next, you will want to select the plants. I recommend opting for native plants, wildflowers, and grasses as they are already well-adapted to your local climate and rainfall. If you would like to choose something else, aim for plants that thrive in average to moist conditions that can be situated in the center of the rain garden. On the higher edges of the garden, you will want to select plants that do well in average to dry conditions.

For the first year, treat the plants with care until they are well-established — this includes mulching with shredded hardwood, weeding regularly, and keeping an eye on their water needs during warm and dry weather.

For additional step-by-step instructions, see The Oregon Rain Garden Guide.¹

Medicinal Plants for Your Rain Garden

Native and ornamental varieties are not the only plants that can thrive in a rain garden — medicinal plants are an outstanding option too! My Medicinal Garden Seed Kit will help you to grow an abundance of useful, pollinator-friendly plants that support beneficial insects that attract birds into your yard.

The seed kit includes chamomile, calendula, chicory, marshmallow, California poppy, evening primrose, yarrow, lavender, echinacea, and feverfew. These blooming plants are not only beautiful, but also have a range of medicinal properties. Here are the uses for each:

Yarrow

This one saved my knuckle. On day 42 of the Alone show, I accidentally cut my hand while gutting a fish. The wound was deep and would have most likely become infected. Luckily I found some yarrow growing nearby and packed some inside my cut. The bleeding stopped in minutes and my wound healed so well that there’s barely a scar left. Yarrow can be found as an important ingredient in my All-Purpose (First Aid) Salve, and you can grow it easily at home!

California Poppy

You don’t know the value of a good night’s sleep until you can’t get it anymore. Unfortunately, as we age that tends to happen to most people. This plant can help support healthy and restorative deep sleep like when we were children, when falling and staying asleep were both effortless. I usually take California poppy as a simple tea or tincture right before bed and then doze off soon after.

Chamomile

My grandmother used to dip a clean cloth in chamomile tea and place it over swollen joints or irritated eyes. Chamomile has a lot of health properties for your muscles, your skin, and your eyes. However, one of my favorite uses for chamomile is to promote sleep, which is why I’ve included it in our powerful Sleep Blend in the apothecary.

Chicory

This plant helps with a wide range of physical discomforts, especially aches and inflammation of the joints. Its bruised leaves can be used as a poultice for swelling. Chicoric Acid (CA) seems to be the plant substance responsible for its medicinal properties.

Echinacea

What I realized in my 20+ years of practicing herbalism is that the medicinal substances found in plants you buy at the herbal stores pale in comparison to the ones you find in nature or grow yourself. It’s never been more evident than for Echinacea, which is a plant known to support the immune system. Echinacea is also used for the urinary tract in both women and men. The entire plant can be used!

Evening Primrose

Our ancestors used this plant for the back, knees, shoulders, and joints. They’d take it first thing each morning and then get to enjoy healthy mobility until the sun went down. I have a big patch of it in my garden and I think it should definitely become a staple in yours as well.

Calendula

In the old days, folks used to dress wounds and cover cuts with a salve made from Calendula flowers. But where this plant really shines is with the immune and lymphatic system. It’s a good plant to have around the house, especially in times like these. I use it as an anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, astringent, antifungal, and antiviral in my All-Purpose (First Aid) Salve and Joint & Movement Salve. Plus, it’s beautiful to look at :-).

Marshmallow

This is a powerful medicinal herb that you’ll want to grow yourself at home. Its leaves and roots are antibacterial, and most importantly, they contain a sap-like substance called mucilage. As the marshmallow mucilage goes down through your digestive tract, it will coat your stomach, intestines, and colon with an additional protective layer, soothing inflammation it finds along the way. It helps people with stomach ulcers and digestive disorders, such as heartburn, indigestion, constipation, irritable bowel syndrome, or Crohn’s disease. This is why I include it in our potent Balanced Gut Blend!

Lavender

A lavender tincture used alongside a regular antidepressant can help you recover from mild to moderate depression a lot faster and lower the chance for a relapse. And if you just rub a few drops of lavender oil on your scalp every day, it will improve blood flow, strengthen hair follicles, and even help with hair loss.

Feverfew

With feverfew in your backyard, you’ll always have a way to deal with a cold, lower a fever, or fight off migraines. This plant is a powerful anti-inflammatory — traditionally people have used it to deal with inflamed and painful joints. Parthenolide seems to be the plant compound responsible for its medicinal power. The highest concentration of parthenolide is found in the flower heads and leaves, so the easiest way to use this plant is to chew them raw so they release the parthenolide flowing inside.

If you live in the USA and would like to learn more about growing your own backyard pharmacy with these plants, tap here to get started!

Nicole Apelian

Nicole’s Apothecary Products in this Post

References

1. “The Oregon Rain Garden Guide” https://portlandnursery.com/docs/garden-planning/OSU-The-Oregon-RainGardenGuide.pdf