What is a ‘rain garden’ and how do i construct one? And, what is the level of difficulty?
April 2nd, 2010
I live a country area and would love to encourage more wildlife to my property and I read a short article suggesting creating a rain garden but no information on how to go about it. I’d also like to know a bit about ‘rain chains’ and what I can use or ‘reuse’ cheaply to make one.
Thanks ahead of time!
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Both previous answers have great info in their links on rain gardens, though neither addressed the rain chain. A rain chain started out as a downspout substitute. It was basically a heavy guage chain hung from the end of the gutter. Imagine if your gutters had no downspouts! It could turn into a waterfall in no time! Now, with a rain chain, the large linked chain would allow the water to travel to the ground without dropping from roof height. Normally people would have a rain barrel or a circle of gravel at the base so the water would not make a hole in the soil. There are many decorative types and styles available on the market now, but the only thing you really need is a length of chain (an inch to an inch and a half wide since smaller chains don’t work as well) and a rod to put through the chain up in the gutter to keep it from falling out of the downspout hole. You could get creative and make one out of funnels, or cu