Horticultural Therapy and Design

Given that I practice what I preach and sing the praises of rainwater harvesting, you'd think I have a rain barrel at every downspout collecting precious rain water from all my rooftops. I'm a landscape designer who practices xeriscaping and firmly believes in water conservation (having a husband who pays the water bill and reminds me of it also helps). I should have an underground cistern; I should have tens of rain barrels; I should be giving my garden nothing but healthy water. But I am a homeowner who has good intentions and limited funds for extras. Well, there came the opportunity and The Law of Attraction: while hunting for cheap pelargoniums at The Home Depot, I came across a rain barrel by Fiskars! Finally, rain barrels that are easily accessible to all of us, and for only $69.97 for a 48 gallon-capacity. Of course, looking at the HD website, you'll see many other styles, capacities and prices -- but you have to order them. Too much trouble.

This past week has been a particularly good trial period, what with all the intense storms we're having. It took less than a day--and the garage roof only-- to fill that barrel, which made me yearn for more barrels. All that wasted water! No doubt, I'll have to wait on that, but the next ones I buy will probably be of a different style and capacity. Yes, they should match, but there are other factors to consider: round or flat back (where are you putting it?); style (does it go with the style of your house?); color; location of output (some are lower than others -- how will you access the water?); size and location (how are you going to use the water? greenhouse? indoor plants? vegetable garden?); material (will you put it in full sun? how long will it last you before it starts breaking down?).  Then there's the question of "what if I move?" Take it with you, because it won't add value to the house-- not in this market--and it probably won't help sell the house anyway.

Whatever you do, just go out and buy your first barrel. You'll see, it's like a potato chip: you can't have just one.