Rain gardens provide solutions to stormwater runoff by capturing rainwater efficiently and trapping pollutants from entering our waterways. They can be created intentionally or occur naturally in the landscape and provide many benefits to you, your community, and the environment. In this blog post we dig deeper into rain gardens, some of the grasses and sedges we recommend, and a video with Sami from our Sales Team.

Carex is a great choice to use as a garden edging, as well as a replacement for turf grass, as many handled mowing quite well (and need it less frequently). It can be an exceptional option if you are looking to replace your lawn with a less costly, more sustainable option, and they are wonderful options for suppressing weeds. Since sedges are bunching grass (grown in tufts, rather than as sod) and have great root systems, they provide ecological importance to your gardens.

This piece from Coastal Point takes a closer look at sedges and all their greatness.

Check out this site that provides practical, educationally-sound information on native landscaping developed specifically for first-time native plant gardeners looking for help getting started. It also features a growing number of free, downloadable native garden designs created by professional landscape designers for multiple ecoregions in the United States, taking into account various light, soil and moisture conditions.

Are you tired of battling with fickle flowers and stubborn weeds? Worried about the environmental consequences of maintaining a curated lawn or garden? Even if you're just interested in cutting your water bill in half, it may be time to try out a more eco-friendly alternative to typical lawns: Meadowscaping.

Learn more about this up-and-coming natural gardening trend and how you can use it to transform your outdoor space in this article from House Digest.

Working out the best plants for your green roof will primarily depend on the type of green roof you have. A green roof can be an intensive (or thick) type; extensive (or thin); or semi-extensive/hybrid, which is a combination of the two. 

An extensive roof needs to be able to function independently as you will not be able to access it once it is established, so plants such as sedums are popular. For an intensive roof, access is essential as you will need to occasionally tend to your green oasis. On an intensive roof, your options are much broader and you are able to grow everything from sedums to trees. 

To help you make the right choice, this article from Homes & Gardens rounded up popular options for every type of green roof. These practical yet pretty plants are ideal for adding coverage, color, and interest to your green roof.

Not only has population growth and aging infrastructure put a strain on existing stormwater drainage systems, but climate change impacts have also made extreme one-day rainfall events more common. Rapid urbanization's increased impervious surfaces have sped up how fast extreme rainfall runs off into rising waterways, prompting flooding.

How should we deal with these compounding challenges? Local governments are searching for solutions to meet these new challenges, according to experts. Green stormwater infrastructure, GSI, can be a major part of the solution, said researchers at the Texas Water Resources Institute, TWRI, in College Station.

In honor of World Water Day 2023, Placemakers launched a Green Infrastructure Toolkit which is based on best practices for incorporating green infrastructure into local government planning and projects. It provides a comprehensive set of 25 key actions that local governments can implement to create more sustainable and resilient communities. The toolkit is available as a free, interactive document.

Wetlands, coastal plains, sand dunes, forests, and many other permeable surfaces do cheaply (or even for free) what engineered levees, seawalls, and pumps do at a cost of billions of dollars. They protect the land around them from storm surge, flooding rains, erosion, and pollution. They are vital infrastructure that makes us more resilient against climate change, and the cost of destroying them or weakening their ability to function must be factored into the decisions we make to build and grow.

How do these “ecosystem services” fare against the cost of, say, 30 years of emergency operations, utility failures, and repeated rebuilding? Maintaining and restoring natural infrastructure to support healthy functioning saves money, time, and lives.

This article from Scientific American takes a look at how wetlands often have more economic value than new development.

"If you think you are not part of the natural world, allow me to try to convince you that this is not the case. What we believe about our place in nature, largely determines how we perceive, value, shape and interact with it."

This fantastic article from Steven W. Peck, the founder and president of Green Roofs for Healthy Cities and Editor for Living Architecture Monitor magazine takes a closer look at our interconnectedness and interdependence with the natural world.

Cities' relationship with water is a fragile balance. Too little leads to parched landscapes and water shortages; too much can cause deadly flooding, washing away homes, lives, and livelihoods. Last year severe flooding caused devastation around the world, including in Nigeria, Pakistan, and Australia. And it's predicted to get worse.

This piece from CNN shows how five cities are trying to reclaim their relationship with water.