Incorporating a rain garden into our homestead allows us to weave natural processes into our backyard. We can still grow lots of food, keep chickens and bees – all the fun homestead-y stuff – but we can also devote a little space to help protect our urban watershed. Portland receives a lot of rain for nine months of the year and downspouts connected to the
Road Trip: Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center
Upon my arrival into Austin, Texas, I quickly made a beeline for the Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center. It is a place I have seen pictures of in my Landscape Architecture classes as a beautifully designed, sustainable landscape. If you are within 100 miles of Austin, it is worth the detour to see this spectacular place. I tend to flock to parks and gardens when I
Rain Garden Workshop
This past Saturday I attended a workshop on building rain gardens, which was organized through East Multnomah Soil & Water Conservation District, the Johnson Creek Watershed Council, and Leach Botanical Garden. The workshop was held out at the Leech Botanical Garden in outer SE, which I have never been to before. It was a very peaceful and serene environment and I would love to go
How to Build Rain Barrels
Are you ready for your mind to be blown my friend? Get ready, cause here it comes. I built rain barrels! Actually I built four of them and it was so easy to do! I actually spent more time in the hardware store buying the supplies than I actually spent putting everything together. I would say it took about 30 minutes per barrel, plus the