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The raingarden at the Oregon Convention Center in Portland provides an aesthetic urban demonstration that integrates stormwater filtration gardens as a visitor attraction. The raingarden mimics nature’s processes of retaining and cleansing water before it is released back to the Willamette River.

OREGON CONVENTION CENTER RAINGARDEN

The Oregon Convention Center features a “raingarden” which collects as much as 1,000 cubic feet of stormwater runoff (that’s just under 7,500 gal-lons) from the 5.5 acre roof area. The raingarden is a 318 ft. long channel that simulates a mountain stream with basalt columns, wetland plants, native vegetation and grasses. The raingarden consists of terraced cob-bled sedimentation basins that act to slow the water, allowing sediments to filter out and increase time for water to infiltrate into the ground. The water course is lined with 12 tons of Iron Mountain flag-stone and 90 tons of river rock, and vegetated with Common rush, dwarf willow, red osier dogwood, sedges, Yellow Flag Iris, Siberian Iris and water Iris. These plants help to reduce the total volume of storm water runoff as well as help to filter out pollutants and to stabilize the soils. The garden is not only an attractive addition to the exterior of the Convention Center, but also re-turns water to the city sewers cleaner than it came in.

landscape architect : MEYER/REEDDOWnTOWn PORTlAnD, OR

2003

for more information:www.portlandonline.com, Portland Bureau of Environmental Serviceshttp://www.mayerreed.com/occl.html, Meyer/Reed Landscape Arch. profilehttp://www.mayerreed.com/occl.html

Downspout photo credit: meyer/reed.com

URBAN RAInGARDEn

http://www.pova.orgRaingardenphoto credit: Portland OR tourism; www.pova.com

Raingardenphoto credit: Portland OR tourism; www.pova.com

photo credit: www.portlandonline.com

Urban + R

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SEA Streets is a Seattle Public Utilities and natural drainage project located in northwest Seattle. it is a prototype project designed to provide drainage and infil-tration that mimics the natural processes.

SEA Street breaks the 150 year convention of standard street design, using nar-row curbs, curved streets, open drainage swales and an abundance of diverse and native plants. Gardens front the street integrating home and neighborhood, uniting the community visually, environmentally and socially.

SEATTLE PUBLIC UTILITIES

2003

for more information:http://www2.cityofseattle.net/util/tours/seastreet/http://www.seattle.gov/util/About_SPU/Drainage_&_Sewer_System/http://www.djc.com/news/co/11149502.html

SEA STREET: street-edge-alternative

SEA STREETS: nATURAl DRAInAGE

NORTHWEST SEATTLE, WA

Bioswales are along both sides of the road with grasses, sedges and rushes that filter the pollutants out of stormwater. Designers followed the concept of “right plant, right place,” selecting non-invasive species that can survive with little main-tenance in our local climate. Trees with smaller root systems fit more easily within the right-of-way; plants that thrive in wet-lands have been placed in the lower, moist areas of the storm-water swales and ponds. To slow down traffic and reduce impervious surfaces the roads were designed curvy and narrow, reducing impervious surfaces by 11%.

SEA Streets, curvy roadphoto credit: City of Seattle; www2.cityofseattle.net

SEA Streets,bioswalephoto credit: City of Seattle; www2.cityofseattle.net

A concept drawing of the $800,000 SEA project shows 14-foot-wide curved street, swales, additional trees, vegetation and diagonal parking areas for cars.Credit: DJC Seattle Journal of Commerce: Environment

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Raingardens are an easy and fun way to create beautiful landscape features that man-age stormwater on site. They are planted depressions that are designed to take the excess rainwater run-off from a house and its surrounding landscape. The plants used are a selection of wetland edge vegetation, such as sedges, rushes, ferns, shrubs and trees that absorb the excess water, and through the process of transpiration return water vapor into the atmosphere.

Raingardens are beneficial for many reasons: they lessen the effects of drought, remove pollutants from run-off, make paved areas more attractive, and provide interesting plant-ing opportunities. They encourage wildlife and biodiversity, tie together buildings and their surrounding environments in attractive and environmentally advantageous ways, as well as making a significant contribution to environmental problems that affect us all.

Raingardens provide a way to use and optimize any rain that does fall, by reducing or avoiding the need for irrigation. They allow a residence to deal with excessive rainwater runoff without burdening the public storm water networks.

for more information:http://www.raingardens.org/Index.php; raingardens of West Michiganhttp://www.bbg.org/gar2/topics/design/2004sp_raingardens; Brooklyn Botanical Gardenshttp://dnr.wi.gov/org/water/wm/nps/rg/littleone/small.htm

RESIDENTIAL RAINGARDENS

Raingarden- residential bog gardenphoto/design credit: Mike Broili

A rain garden in Philadelphia, de-signed by Edgar David. Rainwater that flows from the house roof to the stone cistern is used to irrigate an intimate collection of woodland plants

Tasmaninan Raingardenphoto credit: http://www.rtbg.tas.gov.au/

Local Pacific Northwest Raingarden

DIG IT! RESIDENTIAL RAINGARDENS

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for more information:http://www.raingardens.org/Index.php; raingardens of West Michiganhttp://www.bbg.org/gar2/topics/design/2004sp_raingardens; Brooklyn Botanical Gardenshttp://dnr.wi.gov/org/water/wm/nps/rg/littleone/small.htm

RESIDENTIAL RAINGARDENS

DIG IN!

PLANTING YOUR RAINGARDEN

WiLdfLOWERS, fERNS, GRASSES, ANd SEdGES:Aquilegia formosa, Columbine Aralia californica, Elk clover Aruncus dioicus, Goatsbeard Caltha leptosepala, Marsh marigold Camassia quamash, Camas Cimicifuga laciniata, Bugbane Darmera peltata, Umbrella plant Heracleum lanatum, Cow parsnip Mimulus guttatus, Monkeyflower Adiantum pedatum, Maidenhair fern Athyrium filix-femina, Lady fern Woodwardia fimbriata, Chain fern Carex obnupta, Sedge Carex testacea, Orange new Zealand SedgeJuncus patens, Grooved rushLiriope muscari. Big blue lily turf

Trees and Shrubs:Acer circinatum, Vine maple Clethra alnifolia, Sweet pepperbush Cornus alternifolia, Pagoda dogwood Cornus sericea, Creek dogwood Gaultheria shallon, Salal Ilex verticillata, Winterberry Physocarpus capitatus, Pacific ninebark Ribes sanguineum, Red-flowering currant Rubus spectabilis, Salmonberry Salix purpurea ‘Nana’, Dwarf blue willow Salix scouleri, Scouler’s willow

If your raingarden is shaded, plant smaller understory trees and shrubs such as river birch and sweet pep-perbush, as well as ferns, sedges, and wildflowers. Re-creating the vertical layers found in a natural forest will provide a number of dif-ferent habitat niches for a variety of birds and other creatures. If you are planting in a sunny area, a wet meadow full of colorful prairie wild-flowers and grasses is an appropri-ate choice.

Raingarden designBrooklyn Botanical Garden web page

http://www.ext.vt.edu/pubs/waterquality.html; Virginia tech

Raingarden vertical layershttp://www.ext.vt.edu/pubs/waterquality.html; Virginia tech

CHOOSiNG PLANTSPlanting a raingarden is the fun part. A variety of native wildflowers, ferns, grasses, shrubs, and trees thrive in moist soil. Your raingarden can be divided into three wetness zones. In the lowest zone, plant species that can tolerate short periods of standing water as well as fluctuating water levels, because a raingarden will dry out during droughts or at times of the year when precipitation is sparse. Species that can toler-ate extremes of wet soils and dry periods are also appropriate for the middle zone, which is slightly drier. You can put plants that prefer drier conditions at the highest zone or outer edge of your raingarden. Plant as many species as you can to enhance your raingarden’s value as wildlife habitat.

RAInGARDEn PlAnT lISTWESTERn MOUnTAInS AnD PACIFIC nORTHWEST

Raingarden vertical layershttp://www.ext.vt.edu/pubs/waterquality.html; Virginia tech

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PUBLIC SChOOL RAINGARDENS:

Glencoe Elementary school is part of the Oregon Green Schools program which promotes raising awareness, resource conservation and reduc-ing the impact of schools on the environment in creative and educational ways. The Glencoe elementary school raingarden is multifunctional. It collects runoff from adjacent streets, reduces storm water in the sewer system and helps prevent local basement flooding and combined sewer overflows. It mimics natural conditions by allowing storm water to filter through vegeta-tion and soak into the ground as it moves slowly through the garden, infil-trating into the base flow. The raingarden also serves to beautify the cam-pus with native foliage and is used as an outdoor educational resource.

PORTLAND BUREAU OF ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES:

PORTlAnD, OR2003

for more information:www.portlandonline.com, Portland Bureau of Environmental Serviceshttp://glencoe.pps.k12.or.us/schools/glencoe/staff/pletz/stormwater_www.oregongreenschools.org

GlEnCOE ElEMEnTARY SCHOOl

https://mttabor.pps.k12.or.us

Raingardenphoto credit: Portland Bureau of Environmental Services

DESIGnER: kEVIn PERRY