That Rainy Day Feeling

I love those days when it is softly raining. Maybe a bit of thunder. I’ve been able to enjoy many of those days this summer since it has been wet. We’ve had all day rains. Spotty rain. And torrential rain. And living in a forest the rain is loud.

I enjoy staying in on rainy summer days with the windows open maybe reading a book or knitting. The background soundtrack of rain softly landing on the ground is soothing and comforting. Living amongst the trees, rain sounds like the drums in a marching band. Each raindrop is a beat as it heats a leaf. Heavier rain, quicker beat. I’ve had to close the windows during heavy rain because it is so loud.

All those leaves high up in the canopy disperse the hard rain into something softer that does not erode the soil but can sink in and water the tree roots. When I put my hands down into the leaf-covered forest floor, the loamy soil underneath the leaves is damp, feeding the trees.

I make sure to keep my garden beds watered but the surrounding forest is on its own. The soil here is sandy so water that makes it through the loam is filtered through sand. Our drinking water, which we get from a well, is clean and fresh.

Drought is a scary. Native trees know how to manage water. On those rainy days as I look out at the wet landscape I pick up some tips from the trees on ways to improve my garden beds:

1. Protect the soil with ground covers or mulch, which help the water percolate down into the soil so plant roots can easily access water.
2. Add compost, manure, and/or mulch to the garden beds to enhance soil. Healthy soil equals healthy plants. I add manure and compost to garden beds in fall so it has a chance to work into the soil during the winter and early spring.
3. Plant in layers with trees, shrubs, flowers and grasses, and ground covers. Various plant heights and root depths protect plants and the soil.
4. Planting natives is an easy way to have a successful garden. The plants know how to thrive in the soil and weather conditions.
5. The best ecological improvement you can make to a landscape is plant a native tree that fits into the space. Not all of us have room to plant an oak or maple tree but we can add understory trees like redbuds, dogwood, or pawpaw trees.

Water. Trees. Soil. Not the most sexy parts of the garden but the parts that ensure a healthy landscape and ecosystem.