It is a common belief that there is an indefinite amount of water available. Rainwater is a renewable resource, however most municipal water plants draw their water from aquifers. Many aquifers are being used faster than nature can refill them.

Rain harvesting is a way of minimizing the effect on municipal water supplies.

To put it in prospective, our world has a limited supply of fresh water. 70% of the Earth's surface is covered in water but only 2.5% is actually fresh water. The rest is salt water. Much of the fresh water is in the forms of ice glaciers and the ice caps. Leaving 3/10 of 1% in the form of lakes, streams, and rivers. Unfortunately this actual small amount of usable fresh water is in danger of constant contamination by runoff.

So this is where rain harvesting comes into play. We can do our part in the form of rain gardens, rain barrels, and rain harvesting storage systems.  All of these are ways to contain the runoff of your property and can make rain water into a usable commodity instead of runoff that gathers pollutants along the way and emptying into the sewer systems, streams, and lakes.

Besides being environmentally friendly you also save money. Using this rainwater you can sufficiently decrease your water bill especially in the hot summer months. Rain water can be used to water your plants indoors and outdoors, water your lawn, wash cars, and much more.  Rain water is naturally soft and does not contain minerals, chlorine, fluorides, and other chemicals. 

Plants respond to rainwater because that is what they strive on in nature. Therefore rain water is much healthier for your plants and plants respond better to the rainwater.

Have you ever noticed how you can water your plants just barely keeping them alive and the first time it rains the plants perk up and flourish?

To calculate your potential reusable water, measure the length x width (be sure and add for your eaves on each side of the house). So overall l x w  gives you your total roof catchment area. Multiply this number by the average rainfall per year in your area and it will give you your annual runoff potential.

Most rain harvesting systems though are 70-90% efficient. With any system you can expect to lose some water by blowing wind and evaporation.

But regardless what  rain you do capture and use is that much less being lost to runoff and that much less gathering pollutants.

Listed below are the Three Main Options for Rain Harvesting.

Another application is a pond side rain garden in which the runoff from your existing pond flows into this area when  there are heavy rains that make your pond overflow.

A third application is running your down spout from your roof into a rain garden

Wherever you choose to place your rain garden keep in mind to use plants that like a lot of water but can withstand dry periods at the same time. The plants will absorb the excess water.

The only thing with rain gardens is that you can not personally use the rainwater to water other plants. Also as a precaution you would want to use Mosquito dunks since this water is usually not moving.

TOP TEN LIST OF FILTERING PLANTS

1. Water lilies- are not so much for filtering as aiding in clarity by shading the pond keeping the sun from getting to the algae and thus feeding it. (Great for ponds but will not work in rain gardens.)

2. Rushes and Reeds- these marginals create dense root mats. Absorb water-borne nutrients.

3. Taro- a tropical plant with elephant ear type leaves. Feed off the nitrates in the water.

4. Yellow and blue flag iris- prefer NOT being planted in pots thus maximizing their nutrient absorption.

5. Arrowhead-a tall vertical arrow -shaped leafed plant that loves nitrates. Great for bogs and islands.

6. Pickerels- great for stabilizing stream beds and pond banks. Has a dense root structure.

7. Water celery-great planted in gravel or islands. Mats of thick roots absorb nutrients.

8. Water hyacinth- large purplish long root masses absorb nutrients. (Great for Ponds but will not work in rain garden)

9. Oxygenators- These are the obvious of all filtering plants. Day gives off oxygen and night give off carbon dioxide. Help starve out algae.( Great for ponds but will not work in rain garden.)

10. Umbrella palms and papyrus- these tropicals are some of the best natural filtering plants.

All runoff from neighbors and road collect in ditch

It is recommended to try to use the rainwater within 10 days or so to keep the water fresh.

This rainwater can be used for watering your plants indoors or outside. Use for washing your car or quick cleanups when working outside.

A garden hose attaches to the spigot at the bottom of the barrel.

If your land is much higher than the location of the rain barrel you may have to raise the barrel to get sufficient water pressure.

Make sure the rain barrel is sitting on a firm base as it will be very heavy when full and to prevent it from tipping.

Some how the idea of a large cistern sitting on the side of your beautiful home does not sound that appealing.

But what if you could have a beautiful water feature and no one would even know it was a harvesting system? You could have a beautiful landscaped yard and store rainwater all at the same time.

Picture a pondless water feature complete with a waterfalls and stream. This system would keep the harvested water re-circulating and fresh all the time. It would prevent the water from becoming stagnant and stale.

By keeping the storage unit under the pondless water feature you can maintain the integrity and beauty of your yard. Then when you need to water your plants you just hook up to a spigot and the stored water is ready to use.

But what happens if you don't want the water feature but still want the advantage of storing rain water. These storage units can be installed and covered with grass, planting areas, patios, and anything else you would like to have and no one will even know you have a rain harvesting storage units installed. Yard runoff and water from your roof down spouts can be diverted into this system.

Swan's Water Gardens Research Center

20001 Padbury Lane Spring Hill, Ks 66083

OPEN :   March 16th-April 13, 2013 : M-F  9-5   Sat 9-4

April 15th-Nov 15, 2013  M-F  9-6   Sat 9-4

Closed:   Nov. 16, 2013--March 15, 2014  Open by appointment only