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Bay-Wise Rain Garden
Fall 2006, Bay-Wise Rain GardenOn October 27, 2006, the Chesapeake Ecology Center partnered with Bay-Wise Master Gardeners (Cooperative Extension, University of Maryland) to hold a workshop and install a rain garden at the CEC. A filled-to-capacity room of 35 individuals, mostly Bay-Wise Master Gardeners, participated in the workshop, and there was a waiting list of several folks. The newly installed Bay-Wise Rain Garden is located at the entrance to the grounds and is highly visible to vehicular and pedestrian traffic.
In the morning, Zora Lathan presented an Overview on Rain Gardens. The CEC primer, Ecoscaping Back to the Future…Restoring Chesapeake Landscapes, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s plant guide, Native Plants for Wildlife Habitat and Conservation Landscaping, were given to each attendee. Classroom instruction was held in the morning from 10:15 AM to 11:10 AM. Zora led the group on a brief 20-minute tour of the CEC rain gardens and other gardens on site. To try and beat the predicted rain showers, the original schedule was changed and the group worked outside from 11:30 AM to 1 PM to install several native shrubs in the 675 square foot Bay-Wise Rain Garden. After planting the garden, the group headed back to the Adams Academy classroom for lunch and discussion — just as it began to rain, which was prefect timing for the plants! In the afternoon, Wanda MacLachlan, Area Educator for MD Cooperative Extension, gave a presentation on Native Plants for Rain Gardens. Time was allowed for questions and answers; and the workshop ended at approximately 3 PM.
Site preparation was all done by hand with a hoe and shovel. Over a few days prior to the workshop, Ricky Meyer worked approximately ten hours to prepare the site for planting. This was done ahead of time in order to have enough time for the classroom session and for planting. Zora and Ricky first measured and marked, with a hoe, a 15' x 45' area for the Bay-Wise Rain Garden. Ricky sprayed the area on three different occasions to eliminate turf grass and weeds.
Ricky Meyer also helped on October 27th, along with Valerie Pawlewicz, and provided assistance to workshop attendees. Wanda and Zora provided hands-on instruction, which was a significant part of the planting session. Ricky and workshop attendees also hauled and spread aged wood chips throughout the rain garden, as well as spread 15 bags of shredded pine mulch. The next day, during the Make a Difference National Volunteer Day, volunteers added an additional 15 bags of shredded pine mulch. Three days later, a kiosk was installed to inform visitors about rain gardens.
Pictures:
Click on the thumbnail image below for a larger picture and description
Size: 675 square feet
Plant List:
The following native plants— obtained from Bay Ridge Nursery, and Shemin Nursery through the Tree-mendous Maryland program—were installed in the Bay-Wise Rain Garden:
- 1 river birch (Betula nigra)
- 10 inkberries (Ilex glabra)
- 10 elderberries (Sambucus nigra)
- 9 beautyberries (Callicarpa bodinieri var giraldi 'Profusion') (not the American native species)
- 5 winterberries (Ilex verticillata)
- 3 oak leaf hydrangeas (Hydrangea quercifolia)
