Rain gardens and bathwater reuse becoming trends, RHS says
Rain gardens and bathwater are becoming gardening trends, the Royal Horticultural Society has said, as gardeners battle predicted water shortages caused by climate breakdown.
At the Chelsea flower show this year, many of the gardens will be focused on reducing water usage. Rain gardens will be on show, including in the Water Aid garden, which includes a rainwater harvesting pavilion designed to slow its flow, collecting and storing it for irrigation of the garden and filtering it for use as drinking water.
Similarly, the National Autistic Society garden uses rainwater which is channelled away from the main terrace via a “waterfall roof”, which feeds into a mossy dell that acts as a swale during periods of high rainfall, holding rainwater until it can drain away into the subsoil. Rain is also channelled into areas planted with species that can cope with wet conditions.
According to the RHS, a rain garden is a shallow area of ground that receives runoff from roofs and other hard surfaces. It contains plants that can stand waterlogging for up to 48 hours at a time, with drought-tolerant specimens at the edges. The water fills the depression then drains, reducing the need for watering the garden as more moisture is held in the soil for longer. Rain gardens can absorb 30% more water than a lawn and reduce erosion by slowing heavy rainfall, as well as providing food and habitat for insects and birds.
In its own gardens, the RHS has hired experts to explore how grey water, such as from the washing up bowl and the bath, can be used safely and effectively. This includes researching plant and substrate combinations that support the right soil microbiology and plant functions to remove potential pollutants and ways to make the movement of water from house to garden more practical.
Fresh tap water is most commonly used for watering the garden, but as British people are being expected to reduce water usage by 20% by 2038 this may become less feasible. Instead, people will have to create gardens which are tolerant to drought, use water butts and start utilising grey water. One of the advantages of using grey water is that it is generated each day, so large storage tanks or reservoirs are not needed.
Dr Nicholas Cryer, senior water scientist at the RHS, said: “The greenest approach to watering your garden is to minimise its use entirely through clever planting and good soil care, with rainwater harvesting the next best thing. But with summers predicted to become hotter and drier and the need to remedy a growing water deficit, we need to be more creative in how we maintain our green spaces. Single use products are now rightly frowned upon and we should consider water the same way. The estimated 60 litres of grey water produced per person within our homes each day can be recycled in our gardens.”
The best plants for a rain garden according to the RHS
For the wet base, use herbaceous perennials such as: Iris pseudo co ru sJunc use ff us us Car exp end ula Lo belia cardinal is Z ante des chi aae th io pica
Then, around the edge, use shrubs and other perennials that tolerate wet soil as well as dry:
Shrubs:Sambucus nigra cultivarsCornus sanguinea ‘Midwinter Fire’Hydrangea ‘Annabelle’Rosa rugosa
Perennials: Ajuga rep tans Camp a nu lag lo me rat aCroc os mia‘ Lucifer’ Geranium‘ Rozanne’
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alive.
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There were 15 target animals caught; three tiger sharks and 12 great white sharks, with five of these killed. The conservation group said no target shark species were caught at any of Sydney’s metropolitan beaches.
Under NSW’s shark meshing program, nets are installed at 51 beaches between Newcastle and Wollongong from 1 September to 30 April every year.
Before the nets were installed last year, the department of primary industries (DPI) advised the agriculture minister, Tara Moriarty, that the nature of the nets used meant the catch of non-target species was “unavoidable”.
Briefing documents prepared by the department for Moriarty, seen by Guardian Australia, also show the shark nets are considered a “key threatening process” because of how many nontarget species, or “bycatch”, are affected.
“The catch in the shark meshing program has always and continues to be dominated by non-target animals. The average ratio of bycatch to the catch of target sharks … in recent years has been approximately 12:1,” one of the briefs said.
The nets were rolled out last year despite the government saying it would wait until it received feedback from eight coastal councils before making a decision.
A brief prepared by the environment department in August last year, seen by Guardian Australia, says the DPI “initially offered coastal councils the option to opt out of shark nets” deployed in their area but then backflipped.
“On 21 August 2023, [Moriarty] announced that the nets would go back in on 1 September for the full meshing season, to allow DPI to gather further data to make better informed decisions about possible changes,” the brief said.
These possible changes could include removing nets in select council areas in the 2024-2025 season, according to the brief.
A government spokesperson on
Monday said the department was incorrect to say councils were offered the chance to opt out of the program.
“Last year DPI conducted formal consultation with relevant councils regarding shark management, including their willingness to be involved in future administration,” the spokesperson said.
“As trials of new technologies are proven to improve safety outcomes for swimmers, the government will consider support for the reassessment of shark nets to move towards new technologies.”
The environment minister, Penny Sharpe, has privately voiced her support for ending the use of shark nets.
Sharpe wrote to Moriarty before the 2023-2024 shark meshing season began, proposing their respective agencies work together with local councils on a “staged approach to remove” the nets.
“I understand work with local councils is progressing to allow them to decide whether to continue to use shark nets in their local areas,” Sharpe wrote in a letter seen by Guardian Australia.
“Giving councils the choice to opt out of shark nets empowers local communities to decide the best mix of shark protection measures for their area.”
Envoy Foundation conservationist Andre Borell, who obtained the documents under the state’s information access laws, said Sharpe should “stand up for the environment publicly”.
“A letter in the background I don’t feel is enough,” Borell said. “We would love for them to be more public about that instead of leaving it all to the community and NGOs.”