Stormwater Tips for Landscapes

​Climate change means more frequent storms with higher amounts of precipitation which means more stormwater runoff.  You can do a lot of things in your landscape to reduce the amount of runoff. 
 

• Plant a tree – A mature deciduous tree can absorb 500-2000 gallons of water per year while an evergreen tree can absorb up to 4000 gallons.
• Layer plant canopies – Layering plant canopies slows rainfall.  Canopies absorb rain and also hold rain on leaves so it can evaporate back into the atmosphere.  More canopy layers mean less rainfall making it to the ground to runoff.  The layering order is large trees over understory trees over shrubs over ground covers.
• Eliminate bare ground – Planting a ground cover or mulching allows rain to soak into the ground.
• Terrace slopes – Terracing spreads runoff out and slows it down allowing it to soak into the ground preventing erosion.
• Use permeable pathways – For walkways consider using mulch, stepping stones, decking, or permeable pavers.  Rain will go through these and soak into the ground.
• Grow a dense lawn – Dense healthy turf prevents erosion and runoff.  Aeration is especially important to promote root growth and rain infiltration.  Cool and Warm season Lawn maintenance calendars can be found at www.pubs.ext.vt.edu.
• Reduce lawn area – Lawns are shallow rooted and often require irrigation. Having more landscape in beds with diverse plants and canopy layers increases rain infiltration and reduces runoff.
• Redirect downspouts – Direct downspouts into lawn or bed areas instead of into the driveway or street.  This prevents the rain collected from your roof from going directly into the storm drain.
• Install a rain sensor – A rain sensor turns off your irrigation system when it’s raining.  This conserves water, reduces your water bill, and prevents overwatering, erosion, and runoff.
• Reduce winter irrigation – Most plants are dormant during the winter (November-February) and do not need much water.  You can actually overwater and kill plants if your irrigation runs the same amount as it does during the summer. 
• Install a swale, rain garden, buffer or rain barrel – These practices slow down and infiltrate runoff or harvest it for use at a later date.  Details on these practices are in the Stormwater Management for Homeowners Fact Sheets at www.pubs.ext.vt.edu.