Trees play a critical role in managing our city’s stormwater runoff. Enjoy this interactive poster from the Arbor Day Foundation highlighting the role trees play in urban stormwater management.
https://www.arborday.org/trees/stormwater.cfm
Trees play a critical role in managing our city’s stormwater runoff. Enjoy this interactive poster from the Arbor Day Foundation highlighting the role trees play in urban stormwater management.
https://www.arborday.org/trees/stormwater.cfm
It’s nearly July and the gardens are green and full of early summer blossoms – using just rainwater.
Late last week the City of Scottsbluff finally turned the water on the downtown gardens, about three months after lawn watering began around the city. Native and well adapted plants use much less water than traditional turf once established. They’re also drought hardy, provide needed habitat for pollinators and create a distinct sense of place with a plant palate tailored for the Nebraska Panhandle.
Rain gardens capture and infiltrate runoff from roofs, driveways, and other impervious surfaces. Rain gardens not only recharge groundwater supplies, but also clean out pollutants, create pollinator habitat, increase property value, and provide year round visual interest for your home.
Check out this interactive rain garden animation from UNL extension.
· Mapping Out the Garden with Anita Gall , Anita’s Greenscaping*Date: March 18, 2016 Time: 11:00 AM—Noon Location: Café de Paris, 15 West 16th Street Phone: 308-633-2529 Garden: Lots 1 & 10, Avenue A between 16th and 17th Streets
· Arbor Day with Amy Seiler, Nebraska Forest Service*Date: April 15, 2016 Time: 11:00 AM—Noon Location: Cappuccino & Company, 1703 Broadway Phone: 308-635-9997 Menu – Cappuccino & Company 2016 Garden: Lots 8 & 16, Avenue A and 17th Street
· Phytoremediation with Leann Sato, Scottsbluff Stormwater Program Specialist*Date: May 20, 2016 Time: 11:00 AM—Noon Location: The Emporium Phone: 632-6222 Garden: Lot 3, 18th Street & 1st Avenue and Lot 4, 17th Street & 1st Avenue
· Great Plants Showcase with Bob Henrickson, Nebraska Statewide ArboretumDate: June 3, 2016 Time: 11:00 AM—Noon Location: Godfather’s Pizza, 2207 Broadway, Phone: 308-632-3644 Garden: Wellhouse #3, Broadway and 23rd Street
· Beneficial Insect Environments with Jeff Bradshaw, UNL Extension*Date: July 29 , 2016 Time: 11:00 AM—Noon Location: Cappuccino & Company, 1703 Broadway Phone: 308-635-9997 Garden: Midwest, PSB, East Overland Entryway (Diverse flowers – new and established)
· Watering a Low-Water Use Landscape with Jim Schild, Associate Director, UNL ExtensionDate: August 19, 2016 Time: 11:00 AM—Noon Location: The Shed, 18 East 16th Street Phone: 635-6555 Garden: Library Bioswale, 1908 3rd Avenue
· Landscaping LID Style with Al Herbel, LEED AP and Lois Herbel, Nebraska Department of EducationDate: September 16, 2016 Time: 11:00 AM—Noon Location: Runza, 1823 Broadway Phone: 631-0397 Garden: Library Bioswale, 1809 3rd Avenue · Gardens Through the Lens with Gary Stone, UNL Extension*Date: October 21, 2016 Time: 11:00 AM—Noon Location: Sam & Louie’s, 1522 Broadway Phone: 308-633-2345 Garden: Library Bioswale, via West Nebraska Art Center , Lot 12 |
The following is Part III of a three part series focusing on the City of Scottsbluff’s 319 grant projects. These projects are designed to reduce impervious cover in parking lots, filtering and infiltrating stormwater runoff. This article will go over project successes. For an overview of the projects, see Part I. For project challenges and lessons learned, see Part II.
In the last article, we went over the challenges of landscaping a hot, harsh urban environment. Now that we have gone over the difficulties of these projects, we are going to outline some of the practices we used that worked well. The following is a list of some of the techniques that were effective and that we will be using in the future:
At this time, those are the most noticeable successes that we have seen. We are hoping that over time, using large landscape beds with adequate soil rooting volume for trees will help the trees to be more successful long-term; however, it will be several years before we know for sure if it is a success. We are also hoping to turn off the drip irrigation systems in the future. During their first summer, though, we will be leaving the irrigation on to help the plants establish their root systems. We may have to continue irrigating during extended dry periods. We will also be observing our plants over time to see how they do- watch for future articles outlining specific plant selections that have done well. All in all, perhaps the greatest success has been being able to remove over 9,500 square feet of concrete from our parking lots and replace it with a beautiful, functional landscape that will have great environmental benefits for years to come.
The following is Part II of a three part series focusing on the City of Scottsbluff’s 319 grant projects. These projects are designed to reduce impervious cover in parking lots, filtering and infiltrating stormwater runoff. This article will go over challenges and lessons learned from the projects. For an overview of the projects, see Part I.
In our last article, we went over the process of removing concrete and installing landscaping to create green areas throughout our downtown parking lots. There are several factors that, when combined, make it extremely difficult for a landscape to be successful in an urban environment. The following is a list of those challenges, along with a few of the lessons that we have learned so far. Over time, we will be continuing to observe and experiment with these landscapes to determine the best ways to make them successful. Continue reading Greening Up the Urban Environment- Part II
The following is Part I of a three part series focusing on the City of Scottsbluff’s 319 grant projects. These projects are designed to reduce impervious cover in parking lots, filtering and infiltrating stormwater runoff.
In 2014, the City of Scottsbluff was awarded $40,000 through the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality’s 319 grant program. The purpose of the grant was to allow the City to install demonstration projects that would promote better stormwater management throughout the City. Through this project, the City was able to remove over 9,600 square feet of concrete throughout several parking lots and replace it with landscaping. In addition, some of the remaining concrete in the parking lots were sloped so as to allow runoff from the concrete to be captured by the landscaped areas. Continue reading Greening Up The Urban Environment- Part I
Wear walking shoes and pre-order your lunch at least two days ahead so your food will be ready upon arrival. We’ll spend 20-25 minutes in the restaurant for the presentation then walk to the gardens for the remainder of the program. Eateries will be providing specials or special menus a week before the event for you to pre-order. Meals range from $5.00—$12.00 per meal.
Fall Grass Showcase with Jim Schild, UNL Extension
Questions?, please call or email:
Phone: 308-630-8011
E-mail: stormwater@scotttsbluff.org
There are many different native or well-adapted plants that can be used in rain gardens in Nebraska. Below are a few that we have used here in Scottsbluff that have done very well in our rain garden.
Bee balm (pictured above) is an excellent rain garden plant, but it can spread aggressively. In our rain garden, it spread very quickly in May and June, but once it started getting hot in July, it stopped spreading. Continue reading Rain Garden Plant Selection for Western Nebraska
The City of Scottsbluff has been selected by the Nebraska Forest Service as a member community in the Greener Nebraska Towns (GNT) Program. This program is designed to improvethe long-term sustainability of member communities. Scottsbluff will be receiving a total of $55,000 in grant funding, $30,000 of which will be allocated to tree planting, and $25,000 of which is to be spent on waterwise landscaping and stormwater management. We will be implementing demonstration projects that incorporate sustainable landscaping, tree planting, and stormwater best management practices, such as rain gardens, bioswales, and porous pavement. We will also be working with residents to plant trees and improve irrigation efficiency. Stay tuned to hear more about everything that we will be undertaking as part of this initiative!