text: One week from today is Earth Day –when people around the world will highlight a variety of ways to help preserve our planet.
  Many parents might even want to involve their children in home earth-friendly activities.
  Involving the Kids
  Butterfly Themed Lesson for Kids
  Pinterest, for example, is full if ideas on how to involve the kids come April 22nd:
  — butterfly themed lessons for preschool (left),
  — creating spring sensory bins,
  — flower planting themed activities,
  — making a worm-friendly mud containers
  Contemporary Rain Barrel Urn/Gardeners.com
  Some parents might even involve their children in setting up a simple rainwater harvesting project — barrel rainwater harvesting.
  “Basically all that involves is connecting a pipeline from a roof or terrace to a large barrel,” says our own Dave Stockwell. “You can even set up several barrels for collecting the rain, since we often get a fair amount in our neck of the woods.”
  If you don’t want to purchase special rain barrels, you can use a simple trash holder. Plus, getting the kids to help clean the trash clan before setting it up is an easy safe job for them.
  Rainwater Garden
  If you’re storing rainwater and have a garden, you can place a pipe to directly connect with it. “All it needs is an easy tap in order to control the water flow and prevent any overflow into the garden,” says Dave. “Some might even increase the amount of gardening they are doing because of the abundance of water they have at hand.”
  It’s helpful to remember that only a small amount of falling rain actually seeps into the ground. Much of it ends up as runoff in our sewers and on into our waterways. So saving it and utilizing it is truly a gift to mother earth for Earth Day 2021.
  Sustainable Water Features
  For those interested in adding a water feature to their yard, business, or public land, but don’t want to waste precious water to keep it running and topped off, can consider more complicated rainwater harvesting products.
  “Indeed, we are so very passionate about rainwater harvesting that we have a special division at Deck and Patio devoted to such beneficial water preservation projects,” says Dave.
  Here’s an example:
  Rainwater Harvesting (Brooklyn/NY):
  For this project, we also installed an automatic valve; when the water gets low in their new pond, waterfalls or stream, water in the irrigation system flows in and replenishes it.
  While we’ve done hundreds of green water features at private homes across Long Island, a favorite project we sharing below we did several years ago for the Town of Huntington at the local railroad station.
  And for an example of a public project:
  Public Sustainable Water Feature (Huntington, NY):
  In cooperation with the Town of Huntington (Long Island), we added this serene water feature and a paver pathway at the area train station parking lot.
  Permeable pavers by Techo-Bloc were put over gravel and a rubber liner which filter the rainwater runoff before it reaches the reservoir we installed at the end of the stream.
  Public Sustainable Water Feature (Huntington/NY):
  “There is enough captured water at this train station water feature to not only sustain itself, but to also irrigate all the plantings,” says Dave. “Plus, this eco-friendly system keeps any non-filtered rainwater from going into the Town’s sewer system and on into Huntington Bay.”
  As Earth Day approaches, there’s lots of ways to celebrate Mother Earth. Happy conserving!
  By June Sullivan|2021-04-15T11:35:09-05:00April 15th, 2021|Aquascape Biofalls, Backyard Escapes, Environment Issues, Family Fun, Gardening, Herb/Vegetable Gardens, Landscape Planning, Landscaping, Living Landscapes, Local Public Projects, Outdoor Living, Ponds & Water Features, Rainwater Harvesting, Sustainable Water Features, Unique Ideas|Comments Off on Eco-Friendly Projects for Earth Day, 2021
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  Rain On! Making Every Day “Earth Day”
  Next Wednesday (April 22) is Earth Day, a day when people around the world focus on the well-being of Planet Earth.
  At Deck and Patio, however, we strive to make every day Earth Day. When working to beautify a landscape, we consider the project’s impact not only on the property, but how it will affect surrounding habitats.
  It is not surprising, then, that water being such a dominant part of the Earth’s health, offering sustainable water features to our clients has become a key element of our business. When these are installed, consumption of the local municipal water supply is significantly reduced.
  In fact, Long Island and her environs’ growing passion for such projects has evolved an entire separate division at our company: The Rainwater Harvesting Group, where RainXchange systems by Aquascape Inc. are the mainstay of our water preservation projects. And they have included residential, public, commercial, and industrial properties.
  Here is a small sampling.
  Backyard Habitat for Wildlife:
  There are lots of bonuses in having a backyard sustainable water feature. Because the water held in the Aquascape RainXchange system is always moving and being aerated, it can’t help but become a sanctuary for wildlife.
  How Wildlife Aid Ecosystems:
  “When you attract wildlife such as this North American Bullfrog into your yard and other amphibians who like to hatch eggs in or near water, you contribute to a healthy eco-system,” says Bill Renter, Deck and Patio’s Outdoor Living Expert. “Frogs, for example, eat algae in the water, thereby helping to keep it clean. Adult toads also aid your garden because they help control insects — as do the birds that the water feature will naturally attract.” (Photo: Wikipedia/Tigershrike)
  RainXchange Systems:
  For this same decorative water feature, the water seems to disappear into the gravel, but instead is collected in a completely sub-surface system. There it is recirculated to maintain the feature. Bright plantings that include green ground cover and water plants, as well as river gravel, add to the natural look and serenity of it all.
  Public Sustainable Water Feature:
  In cooperation with the Town of Huntington (Long Island), we added a serene water feature and a paver pathway at the area train station parking lot. Permeable pavers by Techo-Bloc were put over gravel and a rubber liner which filter the rainwater runoff before it reaches the reservoir we installed at the end of the stream.
  Public Sustainable Water Feature:
  “There is enough captured water at this train station water feature to not only sustain itself, but to also irrigate all the plantings,” says Bill Renter. “Plus, this eco-friendly system keeps any non-filtered rainwater from going into the Town’s sewer system and on into Huntington Bay.”
  Rainwater Collection from Brooklyn Roof:
  Here you see us when we were hard at work in Brooklyn. Now that it’s finished, when water falls off the clients’ 4-story roof, it collects in a 500-gallon underground rainwater harvesting reservoir (RainXchange). “When the reservoir is full, water flows into an overflow regeneration zone where it can perk slowly back into the ground,” says Renter.
  Private Water Systems:
  In the past, excess rainfall from this Brooklyn 4-story roof ran off — unfiltered — into the NY City sewer system. Now, because the overflow is collected, stored, and controlled, rainwater maintains their backyard plant and vegetable gardens, completely separate from the city’s water systems.
  By June Sullivan|2017-01-21T16:34:38-05:00April 16th, 2015|Backyard Escapes, Backyard Refurbishments, Backyard Upgrades, Creative Design, Design and Build Experts, Landscaping, Living Landscapes, Ponds & Water Features, Rainwater Harvesting|0 Comments