Rain gardening 101: Brighten your yard & keep waterways clean
The 80,000 acres of prairie that once flourished across St. Louis, Missouri are all but gone today — replaced by roads, buildings and lawns. And when nature disappears, rain has few places to go.
That’s a growing problem. As the atmosphere warms, it holds more moisture — which means more rain. Climate change is making storms more intense and flooding more frequent in many parts of the U.S.
The cost is rising. Nationwide, the number of billion-dollar flood disasters has more than doubled in the past five years. The loss of U.S. wetlands alone is estimated to have cost us more than $33 billion in flood damages, according to new research from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Environmental Defense Fund.
What’s worse? Rainwater picks up motor oil, fertilizers and other toxic chemicals as it pools and puddles on our roads and lawns, and it carries that pollution to rivers, lakes and streams. Stormwater runoff is the leading cause of water quality problems in the U.S., according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and reports from individual states.
But in surprising and inventive ways, people are rising to the challenge — by bringing nature home. In St. Louis and nationwide, there is growing support for rain gardens: Water-loving native plants that soak up rain, clean up pollution and lower flood risk — all while creating habitat for birds, butterflies and bees.
Increasingly, they are being paid to do so. So far, 25 grant programs in 15 states reimburse property owners for building a garden designed for rain.
“Rain gardens are great examples of working with nature instead of against it,” says Adam Gold, who leads stormwater research at Environmental Defense Fund. “Rain gardens help slow and clean stormwater, which improves downstream water quality and water supply. There are also many other ecological benefits from a well-designed rain garden, and it’s an attainable way for people to help the environment.”
Some call this approach “rainscaping.” Others simply call it planting a rain garden.
A garden that gives back
“I love it. It’s what I see when I first walk out the door in the morning,” says Bethany Keller, a 48-year-old university administrator, of her wildly colorful rain garden in the St. Louis suburb of Webster Groves. “We have seen so many more birds in our yard, since doing the native plantings.”
In Keller’s front yard, birds feast on black chokeberries in her berry bramble, while wildflowers light up all season — from the first twinkling of Virginia bluebells in early spring to the fireworks of Missouri coneflowers in early fall.
Keller’s front yard is also now a sophisticated system: Stormwater streaming down from her home and garage roof are diverted through downspouts to her rain garden, where healthy soils and thirsty native plants help slow down, spread out and soak up the deluge — lowering the likelihood of a flood. As the rain sinks deep underground, intricate root systems filter and cleanse the water.
Keller installed her garden with the support of a cost-share program offered by the Deer Creek Watershed Alliance, which allowed her to hire a landscaper to dig up a buckling driveway and replace it with native plants.
Attracting pollinators and passers-by
While engineers and scientists might see rain gardens first as a stormwater solution, home gardeners are often drawn by other perks — like attracting butterflies and birds, or the ease of gardening with plants innately adapted to difficult conditions.
“I’m basically in the middle of a food desert for pollinators, and so they all rely on my yard,” says Patrick Mahon, a 36-year-old horticulturist who lives in a newly built subdivision in Warrenton, Missouri, about an hour’s drive west from St. Louis.
Mahon installed a sloping ribbon of rocks in his backyard, planting native trees, shrubs and wildflowers alongside to mimic a dry creek bed. His lush, vibrant garden now redirects, slows and filters an enormous amount of stormwater.
Birds, butterflies, salamanders and other wildlife forsake his neighbors’ manicured lawns for the food and shelter they find Mahon’s garden.
For other homeowners, native plant rain gardens are a solution to difficult conditions. Aubrey Byron, a 36-year-old writer living in the urban Fox Park neighborhood in St. Louis, applied for a rainscaping grant from the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District in 2024 to solve an eyesore: A neglected, steeply sloping patch of weeds in front of her home.
“It was horrible,” Byron recalls. The slope, its poor soil covered in patchy weeds, was swiftly eroding, and everything she tried to plant died. The angle was so steep that Aubrey couldn’t push a lawnmower up it — her husband could, just barely, with an awkward running start.
“My husband is so happy he doesn’t have to mow it anymore,” Aubrey says. With the support of the grant, Byron could afford to hire a native plant landscaper who helped her select the best deep-rooted native wildflowers — like coral bells, eastern bluestars and St. John’s wort — to secure the slope. Their long roots prevent erosion and nourish the soil. The sloping yard now grows a feast for bees and butterflies.
This spring, as the wildflowers blossomed, Byron’s one-year old son insisted on walking through the garden each day — carefully stopping for a deep sniff of each new bloom.
How to get started planting a rain garden
Anyone in a rainy locale can do their part to keep waterways clean — and create a beautiful, low-maintenance garden in the process. Here’s how.
1. Figure out your waterscape
Next time it rains, pull on those galoshes and observe: How does rainwater flow on your property? Where does it pool into persistent puddles? How steep are any slopes?
Once you’ve spotted the problem areas, consider different ways to tackle them:
- Rain barrels can capture stormwater from a gutter, keep it out of overwhelmed storm drains and provide irrigation during dry spells.
- Native plants and shrubs in a rain garden can filter and slow down rainwater.
- Permeable pavers that allow rain to soak into the soil are a smart alternative to cement pathways.
- Dealing with a steep slope, lots of asphalt or an especially boggy lawn? Consider reaching out to a local native plant landscaper. Professionals can help with more elaborate installations to solve more difficult landscaping problems, like a severely steep slope or lots of stagnant water.
2. Check your sun and soil
If you’ve identified a good spot for your rain garden, check on it throughout the day: Is it mostly shady, mostly sunny, or a bit of both?
Soil is the secret sauce of any garden. To find out what type is in your yard, hold a bit of soil in your palm and try to form it into a ball. Does it remain in a ball when you open your hand? If yes, you’re working with clay-heavy or loamy soil. If it crumbles, it is sandy.
If you have a sticky ball of soil, press it between your thumb and forefinger to try to make a ribbon — if it breaks apart, it is loamy. If you can flatten the soil into a ribbon, it is clay-rich.
Native plants can thrive in any of these soils. You simply need to choose the best plants for your spot.
3. Pick your plants
Now you’re ready to seek out plants well-adapted for your light and soil conditions. Since native plants are specific to your region, look for local resources for plant lists and guides. National Audubon Society and Wild Ones are good starting points for finding native plant nurseries in your area. Local landscapers and nurseries can help answer questions, too.
4. Planting time!
The best part: Time to plant. Spring or fall are excellent times to plant native plant seedlings.
Dig about six to 12 inches deep and make a shallow, gradually sloping depression for your garden, and plant your natives densely to help their roots filter rain more effectively.
Native plants don’t like much compost, but if your yard is particularly hard and compacted you can judiciously mix some organic compost with your topsoil.
Once you’ve planted your garden, spread about two inches of organic mulch around the plants to help keep weeds at bay and moisture in the soil as the young plants get established. Don’t keep adding mulch every year — native plants don’t need it.
If you need to remove a lawn before planting, there are a few nontoxic ways to shrink your lawn to clear space for a rain garden.
5. Maintaining
Native plants are lower maintenance than the cultivated kinds you find at big box stores or traditional nurseries, and they require no pesticides or fertilizer. But in the first couple of years, they’re babies and need some TLC while they get established. If it doesn’t rain, water your rain garden once a week. Weed regularly for the first two years to keep aggressive and invasive plants from overpowering your garden.
In the fall, leave the leaves — pile them up and redistribute them as mulch in your rain garden to help create healthy soil.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is a rain garden?
A rain garden is a shallow, planted depression designed to capture and absorb stormwater runoff from rooftops, driveways and lawns. Filled with water-loving native plants, rain gardens filter pollutants and allow rainwater to soak into the ground rather than flowing into storm drains and local waterways.
How is a rain garden different from rainscaping?
Rainscaping is a broader term for any eco-friendly landscaping practice that manages stormwater on your property without diverting it elsewhere — including rain gardens, rain barrels, permeable pavers and native plants. A rain garden is one specific type of rainscaping project that involves reshaping the landscape and planting water-loving natives to divert, slow and filter stormwater. Many home gardeners, however, refer to both interchangeably.
What is a rain barrel?
A rain barrel is a container that collects and stores rainwater from your roof via a downspout. The collected water can be used to irrigate your garden during dry spells, reducing both water waste and stormwater runoff. In drought-prone places, installing a rain barrel for irrigation is a great way to help reduce water use.
Can rain gardens prevent flooding?
Rain gardens help reduce flood risk by absorbing stormwater on your property instead of letting it flow into overwhelmed storm drains and waterways. While a single rain garden won’t prevent major flooding, many rain gardens across a neighborhood or watershed can significantly reduce the volume of runoff that contributes to floods.
Around the country, community groups — such as Bronx River Alliance in New York City, Metro Blooms in Minneapolis and The Watershed Project in the San Francisco Bay Area — work with people in flood-prone neighborhoods to install rain gardens and other nature-inspired stormwater solutions.
What is native plant gardening?
Native plant gardening uses plant species that naturally occur in your region. These plants have deep root systems that help absorb water, prevent erosion and support local pollinators and wildlife — all without the need for pesticides or fertilizer.
How do I garden in a drought?
Water new native plants once a week until they’re established, usually within one to two years. Once established, native plants are drought-tolerant thanks to their deep root systems. Mulching helps retain soil moisture, and rain barrels can store water for dry periods.
Why can lawns be harmful?
Traditional turf grass lawns don’t absorb much rainwater, contributing to stormwater runoff and flooding. They also require pesticides, fertilizers and regular mowing — which can harm water quality, air quality and local wildlife habitat.
What is a “nature-based solution”?
A nature-based climate solution uses or mimics natural systems and processes to address environmental challenges such as flooding, water pollution and habitat loss. Rain gardens are one example of a nature-based solution that homeowners can implement on their own property to mitigate stormwater pollution and reduce flood risk.
What is green infrastructure?
Green infrastructure refers to systems that use or mimic natural processes to manage water, improve air quality and provide other environmental benefits. Examples include rain gardens, green roofs, permeable pavement and urban tree canopies. Unlike traditional “gray” infrastructure like storm drains and pipes, green infrastructure works with nature rather than against it. States increasingly recognize that managing rising flood risks requires a combination of gray and green infrastructure, working together.
Can I get a grant to plant a rain garden?
Beyond the St. Louis area, 25 water-friendly landscaping rebates are on offer in 15 states. For example, famously rainy Seattle reimburses residents for rain gardens, as do municipalities facing rising flood risks like Raleigh and Austin, among others. One of the most generous programs is in Saint George’s County, Maryland, where up to $6,000 in reimbursements helps homeowners keep pollution out of the Chesapeake Bay.
Google terms like “rainscaping grant,” “native plant gardening grant” and “rain garden grant” plus your city or town to see if programs exist in your area. If you’re applying for a grant, carefully note the requirements to make sure your project will qualify.
What is stormwater runoff?
Stormwater runoff is rainwater that flows over impervious surfaces like roads, rooftops and compacted lawns instead of soaking into the ground. As it flows, it picks up pollutants like motor oil, pesticides and fertilizers, carrying them into storm drains and local waterways. It is the leading source of water quality problems in U.S. streams, lakes and rivers, according to the EPA and reports from individual states.
How does landscape design impact flood risk?
Hard, impervious surfaces like concrete, asphalt and traditional lawns prevent rainwater from soaking into the ground, increasing runoff volume and flood risk. Replacing these surfaces with native plants, rain gardens and permeable materials allows water to be absorbed on-site, reducing the burden on storm drains and lowering the risk of neighborhood flooding.
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