“Our new rain garden can absorb 25,000 gallons of water a year,” said Johanna Vietry, URI Master Gardener Project Leader. If forty King Park neighbors planted a rain garden similar to the one in the park, together they could treat one million gallons of rainwater each year.

The Newport community has shown great enthusiasm for this innovative garden. For homeowners concerned about water quality, a rain garden is an inexpensive way to make their property more earth friendly. The Friends of King Park hold regular meetings with neighborhood residents to discuss how they can install rain gardens in their own backyard.