Monsoon Update: Delightful Downpours

This has been a great summer for rain. We have had several days with steady, hard rain-- not the teasing 2-minutes sprinkles that we get some summers. Last Saturday, it rained so hard you couldn't see the buildings across the street. Yesterday, it rained so hard that water was pouring full force out of the scupper that empties my roof.

Much to my dismay, due to construction at my house, I have not installed a rainwater collection cistern yet. When I saw how much water was pouring off on my roof yesterday, I decided to set up a collection container. With my umbrella, I went out in the pouring rain and placed a large plastic bin in line with the scupper downpour. About 5 minutes later, I checked the progress-- to make sure the bin was placed correctly. To my surprise, the bin was full! I went out again, got a large plastic garbage can, and placed it under the scupper.

Unfortunately, when I tried to move the bin, I fell in the mud. I was so wet and muddy that I decided to stay out in the rain the dig some drainage ditches. My new patio is lower than the yard, and the water coming off the patio roof tends to collect near (or on the patio.) Also, water was forming lakes in the yard but not flowing toward the tree basins that I dug months ago for the grey water.

After about 45 minutes, I was a wet, muddy mess, but digging and slopping around in the mud and puddles was fun and exhilarating. It reminded me of playing in the puddles when I was a kid. After I got cleaned up and dried off, I looked outside my kitchen window. Several of the neighborhood children (and a few parents) were playing outside in the puddles. The desert is beautiful.

Here's Ding watching the newly created rivers flow through the backyard to the pomegranate tree.

By morning the bin, the garbage can, and several other containers in the yard were full of water. It was so exciting that I spent my morning exercise hour watering and planting seeds and cuttings. I'm looking forward to having a cistern and gutters installed.

Water Harvesting

Rain water harvesting, grey water use, sustainability, and living "off the grid" are hot topics out here is the Southwest. Since I love gardening but feel guilty about using ground water to water plants, I am very interested in using the grey water and rain water to turn my wasteland of a yard into an oasis.

In February, I had the good fortune to attend a rain water harvesting workshop, sponsored by the Stone Curves Co-Housing Neighborhood. The Stone Curves folks acquired a grant to fund a series of hands-on cistern building workshops. For a nominal fee, about 12 of us spent 2 Saturdays building 2 cisterns and learning about rain water harvesting and gardening techniques.

The first day focused on construction of 2 cisterns and installation of related plumbing. The second day focused on digging catchment basisns and landscaping.

Kevin Koch, owner of Technicians for Sustainability, conducted the construction class. (Kevin is wearing the large straw hat in the two photos above.)

Brad Lancaster, local sustainability celeb and author, taught the groundworks workshop (above). His book, Rain Water Harvesting for Day Lands, is a marvelous resource for anyone interested in this topic. Check out Brad's and Kevin's websites if you want to learn more about cisterns and groundworks landscaping techniques.

Ironically, only a few days after the rain water harvesting workshop, I spent a few days at the Phoenician in Phoenix on business. The neon green grass, heated pools, fake streams, golf courses, and fountains of the Phoenician are obscene. Surrounded by acres of wasted water and energy, it was extremely difficult to enjoy my stay. In the morning, it was a nippy 45 degrees F, but the Phoenician's 6 swimming pools were heated to the temperature of bath water. Immediately below is a picture of the terraced gardens at Stone Curves. Contrast that with a shot of the Phoenician at the bottom. When will Phoenicians realize that they live in the desert--not the tropics?