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Greetings!
Thank you for your interest in the Deer Creek Watershed. This special version of the 1st Deer Creek Watershed email newsletter is being sent to interested Ladue residents. February is an exciting month, marking our first meeting of the year. We look forward to seeing you and our guest speaker, Cindy Gilberg. Come prepared to share your valuable input towards creating a healthy Deer Creek Watershed.
Sincerely,
Rick Holton, Chair, Ladue Creeks Committee
of the Deer Creek Watershed Friends
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Rain Gardens with Cindy Gilberg
Winter 2009 Deer Creek Watershed Meeting
Tuesday, Feb 24th at Ladue City Hall, 4:30-6:30 pm.
Cindy Gilberg will present on the elements of rain garden design and why rain gardens can be an important contribution towards effective watershed management during the first meeting of 2009.
4:30 pm. Social and light refreshments
5:15 pm. Featured speaker: Cindy Gilberg on Rain Gardens
6:00 pm. Facilitated discussion: Moving forward in the Deer Creek Watershed
Cindy is a landscape designer, horticulturalist, and garden writer & speaker who consults part-time for Shaw Nature Reserve. Cindy works toward establishing a relationship with the garden and the gardener in an effort to customize each design in a way that works for both. Whether it is residential or commercial property, she combines design with sustainable solutions to create dynamic landscapes.
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Slow It Down, Spread It Out, Soak It In
New Online Video Now Available for Viewing
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Botanic Garden have produced an on-line video, "Reduce Runoff: Slow It Down, Spread It Out, Soak It In," that highlights green techniques such as rain gardens, green roofs and rain barrels to help manage stormwater runoff.
The film showcases green techniques that are being used in urban areas to reduce the effects of stormwater runoff on the quality of downstream receiving waters. The goal is to mimic the natural way water moves through an area before development by using design techniques that infiltrate, evaporate, and reuse runoff close to its source.
The techniques are innovative stormwater management practices that manage urban stormwater runoff at its source, and are very effective at reducing the volume of stormwater runoff as well as capturing harmful pollutants. Using vegetated areas that capture runoff also improves air quality, mitigates the effects of urban heat islands and reduces a community's overall carbon footprint.
The video highlights green techniques on display in 2008 at the U.S. Botanic Garden's "One Planet - Ours!" Exhibit" and at the U.S. EPA in Washington, D.C., including recently completed cisterns. To watch the video, go to http://www.epa.gov/nps/lid.
More information on stormwater management is available at http://www.epa.gov/greeninfrastructure.
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 Coming this Spring: April 25
Deer Creek Watershed Day of Service
Saturday, April 25, 2009, 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM
On Saturday, April 25, The Ladue Creeks Stream Team will assist
Ladue homeowners and property owners in removing trash from
creeks, streams, and drainages on their property by providing:
- Leather Gloves
- Trash Bags
- Trash pickup and disposal
- Stream Team T-shirts for all participants
The City of Ladue, Missouri Botanical Garden, Missouri Department of Conservation, and Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District are providing support and assistance.
Ladue is home to over 20 miles of creeks and tributaries. The creeks are privately owned by more than 500 Ladue residents and institutions. Many of our creek names are lost or unknown. All of our tributaries flow into Deer Creek, River des Peres, and eventually the Mississippi River. Although some of our smaller residential neighborhood creeks are clean, many contain years of accumulated debris in addition to trash washed downstream during the great floods of 2008.
The City of Ladue Creeks Cleanup will be conducted by and for the residents of Ladue. There will also be other clean up and tree planting events on that day within the Deer Creek Watershed as part of regional Earth Day celebrations.
Many thanks to Dian Schock for serving as Honorary Ladue Creeks Commodore for this exciting event. If you would like to volunteer please register here and you will be assigned a creek section. To request additional information please contact event organizers Fiona and Randy Woods at 314.991.2255 or fwoods@deercreekfriends.net.
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About Deer Creek Watershed Friends
Our purpose is to assess and improve the Deer Creek Watershed. Membership in Deer Creek Watershed Friends is free; by registering to receive this newsletter you become a member. Please forward this email newsletter to your friends and encourage them to become a Deer Creek Watershed Friend, too. Deer Creek Watershed Friends is sponsored by Missouri Botanical Garden.
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