Kathleen Groll Connolly, Landscape & Garden Designer, Speaker, Writer
Connecticut’s climate could hardly be described as arid. In fact, historical rainfall averages 45 to 50 inches each year. But averages are meaningless when summer gardens are going brown, and there’s no rain in the forecast. Historical records show our summers are often dry and sometimes for many weeks.
I have been a fan of rain barrels for many years. (I own eight of them and wouldn't be without them.) I have also written about these handy devices on several occasions, most recently this week in the community papers for ZipO6/TheDay. In this article, Beverly O'Keefe, "the Rhode Island Water Lady," offers rain-saving pointers.
She reminds us, "Rainwater is the preferred beverage of all plants. It is well oxygenated and naturally distilled.” She adds, “It isn’t chemically treated, so the water’s pH isn’t artificially elevated.”
In the middle of a dry July, wouldn't it be nice to have some rain barrels brimming with H2O? A visit to the Rhode Island Water Lady can make it happen. We picked up two new barrels for our worthy fleet of water-dispensing vessels and learned about Beverly O'Keefe's other water adventures (think solar rain barrel pumps and self-sustaining ponds).
And if you want to know more about rain barrels, please visit my article on the topic.
