Rain Gardens will be the topic for the The Gardeners Exchange Group (GEG) June meeting June 21 at 9 a.m. at the home of Jane Blash. For directions visit the GEG Website, www.g-e-g.org or call Carole Brooks at 240-405-7013.

Mary Palmer is the Landscape Design instructor for the Berkeley-Jefferson Extension Master Gardener program and is a life-long gardener. Specializing in permaculture garden designs, Mary has been instrumental through her association with Opequon Creek Project Team in the design and installation of five public rain gardens in Berkeley County and a multitude of private rain gardens at nearby homes.

What is a Rain Garden? Rain gardens are a beautiful and colorful way for homeowners to conserve, filter and manage storm water. A typical rain garden is a shallow, constructed depression that is planted with deep-rooted native plants & grasses. It is located in your landscape to receive runoff from hard surfaces such as a roof, a patio or a driveway. A rain garden will slow down the rush of water from these hard surfaces, allow it time to naturally infiltrate into the ground and recharge the local groundwater table. Rain gardens can be an inexpensive, lovely addition to a landscape and offer an environmentally sound solution to stormwater runoff.

GEG is an informal network of avid gardeners from Jefferson, Morgan and Berkeley counties and the nearby areas of Maryland and Virginia. Its purpose is to bring together people who share an interest in the practical, hands-on challenges and pleasures of gardening. Members are young and old; men and women; retired and working people; professional gardeners, master gardeners and beginners. The gardening interests of GEG members are just as diverse: wildflowers to roses, fruit trees to mushrooms, water gardening to Xeriscaping.

GEG members share information, resources, expertise, labor, plants, and experiences through monthly meetings, garden visits, and special events. We meet at 9 a.m., usually on the third Saturday of the month, April through October. The group welcomes new members.