Thirty visitors from around the Central Kentucky area toured thirteen established rain gardens in Midway, Berea, and Georgetown this past weekend as part of the 2015 Central Kentucky Rain Garden Tour Series. Gardens featured in the tour include private residences, Midway Christian Church, Berea College, Scott County Fire Station No. 3, Lemon’s Mill Elementary School, and others.

“This year’s rain garden tours, despite inclement weather, turned out to be quite lovely.,” said Kara Sayles, coordinator of the rain garden program at Bluegrass Greensource. “The participating hosts and visitors were all very interested and up for exploration of native plants and rain garden construction. The mood was light and fun as we viewed a variety of rain gardens throughout Central Kentucky.”

Tour participants were educated on the construction and maintenance of rain gardens, types of native plants and trees that are appropriate, and how rain gardens, an attractive addition to any lawn, help to improve local water quality. Additionally, participants who reside in Scott, Woodford, Bourbon, Clark, Jessamine, and Madison Counties were given the opportunity to apply for a $250 reimbursement grant to start their own rain gardens.

The 2015 Central Kentucky Rain Garden Tour Series was a collaborative effort between Bluegrass Greensource, a variety of local organizations and homeowners, and the Kentucky Division of Water.