Rain Garden Resource Guide

1. Scarsdale Conservation Advisory Council
Sustainable Scarsdale Educational Series – Issue #1
Resource Guide-
Rain Gardens & Sustainable Landscaping
Rain Garden: How to Construct
 www.bbg.org
 www.sustainability.uconn.edu/pdf/raingarden
 www.vacd.org/winooski/winooski_raingarden.shtml
 http://planning.westchestergov.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1439&Itemid=2432
Rain Garden: Selecting Plants
 www.cce.cornell.edu/onondaga
 www.native-raingarden.com/index
 www.nativeplantlist.org
 www.nativeplantcenter.org
 http://www.ipcnys.org/
Rain Garden: Water Management and Sustainability
 Rain Gardens by Nigel Dunnet and Andy Clayden
 http://planning.westchestergov.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1182&Itemid=2131
Sustainable Landscaping:
 www.epa.gov/epawaste/conserve/rrr/greenscapes/owners.htm
 www.audobon.org/bird/at _home/pdf/AAHPA-43-52-Rain.pdf
Trees:
 http://www.treesaregood.com/treecare/tree_selection.aspx
 http://www.americanforests.org/resources/urbanforests/naturevaluue.php
Additional Information is also available at:
Westchester County
Soil and Water Conservation District
www.westchestergov.com/planning New York State
Department of Environmental Conservation
National Invasive Species Information Center www.dec.ny.gov
www.invasivespeciesinfo.gov
Before You Dig
Natural Resources Conservation Service Dig Safe NY: (1-800-962-7962)
Plant Database
http://plants.usda.gov
Note: this resource page will be available at the Conservation Advisory Council’s website
which can be accessed from the Scarsdale Village website: www.Scarsdale.com

2. Scarsdale Conservation Advisory Council
Sustainable Scarsdale Educational Series – Issue #1
“Rain Gardens”
Yes! A beautiful rain garden can be a colorful focal point of your suburban landscape. It’s
simple to install this effective means of stormwater control. A basic rain garden soaks up runoff
water from roofs, driveways, patios or lawns. These planting beds are strategically placed to
work with nature to direct water into the ground - instead of into our basements and roadways.
The Village of Scarsdale Conservation Advisory Council urges everyone to take a fresh look at
their yard during the next storm with this creative approach in mind.
Why? Local flooding affects not only Scarsdale, but also our neighbors along the various
streams that flow throughout the region, eventually into the Atlantic Ocean. When rainwater
flows into storm drains, it often carries motor oil, pesticides and other pollutants directly into our
rivers adversely effecting wildlife and water quality. The absorption of water on site with a rain
garden, naturally slows and filters the water as it goes into the underground aquifer. This not
only cleans our drinking water, but also lessens the amount of runoff that contributes to
widespread flooding.
Take a look at the Native Plant Center’s demonstration rain garden at Westchester Community
College. It features a dry stream bed that attractively carries water away and into garden beds
that can survive both dry and wet conditions. Their web site provides photographs, planting
suggestions and other detailed information on how rain gardens can be incorporated into your
home landscape. See www.nativeplantcenter.org An informative brochure, “An Introduction to
Rain Gardens,” created by the Cornell Cooperative Extension, will be sent in a future mailer.
The back of this page has a list of additional resources which will provide you with all the
information you need to plan your new water-wise, environmentally beneficial landscape.
The Sustainable Scarsdale Educational Series is produced by the Scarsdale Conservation Advisory Council in
cooperation with the Sustainable Committee of the Village Board of Trustees, the Friends of Scarsdale Parks
and the Village Staff. Issue #1 was researched and written by Lee Singer and Lena Crandall. Watch for fu-
ture issues on topics of tree care, household water and energy conservation and organic lawn care.