Frederick County Office
330 Montevue Lane
Frederick, Maryland 21702
TEL 301-600-1594
FAX 301-600-1588
http://extension.umd.edu/frederick-county
GREEN GARDENS, CLEAN WATER
Barb Mrgich, Master Gardener, Adams County, PA
As a homeowner, are you doing your part to help clean up the Chesapeake Bay? "What," you
ask, "Do I have to do with the Chesapeake Bay?" Surprisingly, the answer is plenty! Never feel
that in the large picture, you are insignificant. If every small property owner made an effort to
stop rainwater run-off from his own property, the total results would be huge!
Penn State recently introduced a new directive called Green Gardens, Clean Water. The name,
was not immediately self-explanatory to me. After exploring several of their webinars on rain
gardens, rain barrels, and riparian buffers, my conclusion is the title is telling us that in order to
protect our drinking water and clean up our lakes and rivers, we need more green gardens.
Pollution of our water is a major threat today. People, such as members of the Chesapeake Bay
Foundation, have been warning us that the Chesapeake Bay has huge dead zones, which will no
longer support aquatic life. The problem is certainly not just limited to the Chesapeake Bay. In
other parts of the country, deep-sea fishermen have to go farther and farther into the ocean before
they can find fish.
What is causing the problem? Of course, there are many causes, but private landowners, as a
group, play a major role. Nutrients, especially phosphorus and nitrogen wash off lawns, pastures,
crop fields, and orchards and dump into the nearest waterway. The extra nutrients feed vast
amounts of algae, which eventually die, depleting the water of oxygen. Many lawn and garden
care products contain chemicals that are toxic to fish and other aquatic life. Always check the
label before using. Just because you don't live on a lake or river doesn't mean it is safe for you to
use.
The answer to bringing life back to our water centers on stopping the flow of nutrients and toxins
from entering the streams. The key is to temporarily stop and hold the water, then filter and clean
it as it seeps through the soil. How do we do that? Well, here are three easy answers...Rain
Gardens, Rain Barrels, Riparian Buffers.
Cities are way ahead of us country folks in educating about these remedies and putting them into
use. Those of us who live in the country are guilty of feeling that what we do on our own
property is unimportant to anyone else. We are coming to realize that that line of thinking is very
wrong. Each property owner needs to begin to take responsibility for preventing run-off from
leaving his property.
Here is an eye-opener. There is no major water source entering Adams County. All of our water
falls from the sky, and yet the water leaving Adams County is loaded with pollutants. We have
no one else to blame!
The University of Maryland Extension programs are open to any person and will not discriminate against anyone because of race, age, sex,
color, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, religion, ancestry, national origin, marital status, genetic information, political
affiliation, and gender identity or expression.
Agriculture is a major culprit, but again, it is more often the small farm owner more than the big
business that is not on-board with the program. When you see a creek meandering through a
pasture or a cultivated field, unless it is bordered by a wide band of trees, you are witnessing one
source of pollution. From pastureland, animal manure, a great source of nutrients, is washing
directly into that water along with the silt, which erodes off the banks of the stream. In the case
of the crop field or orchard, fertilizer residue along with any chemical that has been sprayed on
the crops has the potential of polluting the stream. This is a job for a Riparian Buffer.
A riparian buffer is a width of trees which is planted along the banks of a waterway. Instead of
flowing directly into the stream, the rain run-off will now be absorbed by the soil and roots of the
trees. Furthermore, the tree roots will serve to hold the soil in place, preventing the erosion and
deposits of silt farther down stream.
Rain barrels and rain gardens are important measures average homeowners can take to stop and
clean water before it flows off their property. A rain barrel will catch and hold water as it runs
off the roof and down a rain gutter. You can then use the water for watering your garden or
potted plants, and it will not only conserve your well or "city" water, but it is better for the plants
because it is not chlorinated.
A rain garden is another solution to catching and temporarily storing rainwater until it can be
purified as it filters through the soil, and is absorbed by the deep roots of the native plants
growing there.
For more information about the Frederick County Master Gardener/Horticulture Program,
visit : http://extension.umd.edu/frederick-county/home-gardening or call Susan Trice at the
University of Maryland Extension Frederick County office, 301-600-1596.
Find us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/mastergardenersfrederickcountymaryland
The University of Maryland Extension programs are open to any person and will not discriminate against anyone
because of race, age, sex, color, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, religion, ancestry, national origin,
marital status, genetic information, political affiliation, and gender identity or expression.