Considerations

The shape of your rain garden can be modified to increase visual appeal from your favorite window, the driveway, etc. Just remember to keep the long side of the garden perpendicular to the downspout to maximize rainwater capture. The size of your rain garden can easily be increased or decreased. Add more of plants already in the plan, or introduce new plants from the list. To make your garden smaller, remove plants from the planting plan. Just remember to keep plants in their proper garden zone! Purchasing fewer and/or smaller plants are great ways to save money. However, it will take more time for the plants to mature, and will require extra weeding to keep your rain garden looking good. Conversely, larger and/or more plants will fill in faster, minimizing maintenance but increasing your cost. Because of Jackson Countys long dry summer, many plants used in rain gardens elsewhere in Oregon wont survive without at least some supplemental irrigation. Using native plants will decrease the amount of irrigation needed. If you do choose plants that require irrigation, remember to conserve water by either the method of irrigation or by irrigating deeply but infrequently.

Rain Gardens
A Planting Plan to Get You Started

For more information or assistance in planning your rain garden please contact : Jackson SWCD at 541-734-3143 or www.jswcd.org Rogue Valley Council of Governments at www.rvcog.org or your local watershed council.

573 Parsons Drive, Suite 102 Medford, OR 97501 Phone: (541) 734-3143 Fax: (541) 776-4295 www.jswcd.org This brochure made possible with help from Rogue Valley Council of Governments

The Rain Garden Plan

Alternative Plants
Here are a few possible solutions for plant substitutions. When substituting, remember to consider drainage, sun, and water requirements. Basin Plants: Slough Sedge (Carex obnupta), Red Alder (Alnus rubra). Elderberry (Sambucus Mexicana), New Zealand Orange Sedge (Carex testacea), Pacific willow (Salix lucida), Common Camas (Camassia quamash), Small-flowered bulrush (Scirpus microcarpus) Slope Plants: Tufted Hair Grass (Deschampsia caespitosa), Wild Strawberry (Fragaria virginiana), Sala (Gaultheria shallon), Spanish Lavender (Lavandula stoechas), Dull Oregon Grape (Mahonia nervosa), Daffodil (Narcissus), Thimbleberry (Rubus parviflorus), River lupine (Lupinus rivularis) Upper Edge: Douglas Iris (Iris douglasii), Evergreen Huckleberry (Vaccinium ovatum), Sword fern (Polystichum munitum), Wild ginger (Sasarum caudatum), Inside-out flower (Vancouveria hexandra), Western bleeding heart (Dicentra Formosa)
Scientific Name Cercis occidentalis Sidalcea malviflora Artemisia caucasica Acorus calamus Asclepias incarnata Carex barbarae Carex comans Achillea Delosperma cooperi Lavandula angustifolia Mahonia repens Height 10-18 24 3-6 4-5 3 1-3 2-5 2 3 2-3 1 Width 12 1.5 2 2 1 2 1 1 1.5 18 3

The Plant List

Code A B C D E F G H I J K Zone S B U B B B B S U S S Common Name Western Redbud Checkermallow Silver Spreader Sweet Flag Swamp Milkweed Santa Barbara Sedge New Zealand Hair Sedge Yarrow Iceplant Dwarf Lavender Creeping Grape

The Rain Garden Completed