Archives for December 2013

Help rainwater absorb slowly back into the earth with paving grids, gravel beds and other porous systems

Since I live in the greater Seattle area, I thought this post from Houzz was relevant.

If you’ve ever lived at the bottom of a hill during an extreme weather event, then you know intimately about stormwater runoff. I have distinct memories of watching my bunny rabbit’s cage float down to the bottom corner of the garden during major downpours, at the Dallas house I grew up in. Many family rescue teams had to be sent out to retrieve my furry friends.

Part of this was surely due to the fact that the Texas summers would dry out the land, and the big rains would be too much for the land to absorb so quickly. The result was a huge torrent of water gushing down the hill. However, it certainly didn’t help that all of our neighbors (ourselves included until we knew better) had huge, paved decks, effectively sealing off the majority of the earth that could otherwise absorb some of that water.

Last week I talked a bit about how a green roof is one way to help manage stormwater runoff. Another simple and straightforward way is to make sure that the landscape of your garden is permeable, including your hardscaping, paths, decks and driveways. I am by no means a landscaping expert, but in designing homes I often need to specify pavements as well. The following are a few applications where porous paving could be a good call.