From the South Orange Environmental Commission:
The South Orange Environmental Commission will celebrate four new residential rain gardens with a ribbon cutting the garden at Fun Funky Art on Irvington Avenue on Saturday, Nov. 7. The Commission invites residents to come see the garden up close and learn how residents can manage stormwater on their own property while adding native plants and building curb appeal.
The other three rain gardens, all slated to be completed in November, are located on Sterling Drive East, Varsity Road and South Ridgewood Road. The gardens grew out of a summer call for South Orange property owners willing to create small, visible, demonstration rain gardens that capture rainwater runoff before it reaches streets and storm drains.
The South Orange Environmental Commission and Green Team, in collaboration with the Rahway River Watershed Association (RRWA), conceived the pilot to make eco-friendly residential stormwater management more visible, practical and achievable. The initiative aims to engage the community and encourage more property owners to capture rain near where it falls and help protect local waterways.
The Village of South Orange and Sustainable Jersey (with funds from the PSEG Foundation) funded the project. An Environmental Commission green infrastructure team, made up of local volunteers and RRWA personnel with expertise in engineering, planning and native plants, reviewed the applications and helped guide site selection and garden development.
There will be a ribbon cutting for the rain garden at Fun Funky Art at 204 Irvington Avenue on Saturday, Nov. 7 at 1 p.m. (Rain date is Sunday, Nov. 8 at 1 p.m. (Photo courtesy of the Environmental Commission)
Rain gardens are shallow planted areas that collect stormwater runoff from roofs, driveways and other hard surfaces, allowing it to soak gradually into the ground rather than flow directly into streets and storm drains. By slowing and absorbing runoff, rain gardens help keep polluted stormwater out of catch basins and local waterways, including South Orange’s own section of the Rahway River. Planted with native species, they can also provide habitat for birds and pollinators.
The selected sites offered opportunities to address runoff while also serving as visible neighborhood demonstrations. The aim was not only to turn “puddles into petals,” but to make rain gardens easier for neighbors to imagine on their own properties.
Participants ranged from experienced gardeners ready to cut century-old downspouts and redirect water from the street into their front yards, to new homeowners just learning the basics of lawn and garden care but eager to transform a 10-by-5-foot patch of grass into a rain garden that captures water previously running straight from house to driveway to street.
Building a rain garden on South Ridgewood Road. (Photo courtesy of the Environmental Commission)
The project builds on the public rain garden at South Orange Middle School, which the Environmental Commission and the RRWA unveiled last fall. The middle school garden reaches students while the residential pilot extends that work into neighborhoods and onto private property.
“As towns throughout the State are working to comply with NJ’s new MS-4 stormwater permit, the SOEC and Green Team hope to play a lead role in educating residents and businesses about how they can retain stormwater on their properties,” said Andy Stone, member of the South Orange Environmental Commission (SOEC). “These four demonstration rain gardens are a start to this process.”
RRWA President Dr. Kirk Barrett, who is a professional engineer and helped design the rain gardens, said “I am very impressed with the Environmental Commission’s project, which will help the Village meet its stormwater education goals under New Jersey’s municipal stormwater program by showing property owners practical ways to manage runoff.”
According to Village Council Member Olivia Lewis-Chang, who is the Council’s liaison to the Environmental Commission: “To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow. A rain garden is where beauty is matched with responsibility—transforming rainfall into an opportunity to protect our environment, naturally channel our waterways and leave a healthier planet for future generations.”
Randall Solomon, Executive Director of Sustainable Jersey stated “South Orange’s residential rain gardens show how local action can protect our waterways and build more resilient communities. We’re pleased to support this innovative effort by the South Orange Green Team and Environmental Commission, with funding from the PSEG Foundation, to make sustainability practical and visible for residents.”
Rain Garden Ribbon Cutting at-a-glance:
Date: November 7, 1 p.m.
Location: Funky Fun Art, 204 Irvington Ave., South Orange, NJ
Rain date: November 8, 1 p.m.
Residents can learn more green infrastructure and rain gardens at the Green Team’s website.
