Released June 8, 2009

HAMPDEN, Maine -- Hoping to set an example for residents, the town of Hampden has teamed up with University of Maine Cooperative Extension and others to create a large-scale rain garden in front of the town office.The garden will be installed June 18 and 19, by UMaine Cooperative Extension Assistant Scientist Laura Wilson and a group of volunteers.

There are several environmental benefits to installing rain gardens, which help reduce rainwater runoff by allowing it to soak into the ground as opposed to flowing into storm drains and surface waters causing erosion, water pollution, and flooding.

Hampden's garden will include all native Maine plants, such as swamp milkweed and high bush blueberries. As part of the collaborative effort, both the town and the Bangor Area Storm Water Group paid for the garden to be designed by CES, Inc., an engineering consulting firm in Brewer. The Town purchased the materials, which were obtained with help from the Penobscot County Soil and Water Conservation District.

The native plants all are hardy perennials and don't require fertilization so are more environmentally friendly. "The town of Hampden wants to provide an example to the community of what can be done to treat stormwater before it reaches the local streams," says Wilson. "They hope individuals will also install these on a smaller scale on their own property." A free guide from UMaine Cooperative Extension about how to install a rain garden in your yard is available at http://www.umext.maine.edu/onlinepubs/PDFpubs/2702.pdf.

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http://extensionnews.blogspot.com/2009/06/hampden-to-install-rain-garden-with.html

Contacts: Laura Wilson, (207) 949-2167

Aimee Dolloff, (207) 581-3777