Hello dear readers! How is your summer garden and landscape looking? As I recently shared in my Vintage Summer Garden Tour, I didn’t get nearly as much accomplished as I would have liked this summer, but my neighbors (and master gardeners) always have their landscape looking beautiful for summer! Not only do they have beautiful gardens, but I admire that they also use the water from their rain barrel to water their plants. I am always wanting to embrace more sustainable and green living practices, so after seeing how easy it is for them to use the water collected in their rain barrel, I wanted to find out a little more about rainwater harvesting. Today I am sharing some beautiful rain barrel ideas for rainwater harvesting. *This post contains affiliate links.
Although I love the idea of rainwater harvesting from a green living standpoint, I have not been really excited about the idea of having a big plastic barrel or a even a trash can barrel right in the landscape. I was afraid of attracting mosquitoes since you should remove standing water immediately.After looking more into the idea however, I now understand how rain barrels work, how to keep mosquitoes out an how to keep the water clean. I also discovered some really beautiful barrels and also some ways to camoflauge them in the garden. Here are some beautiful rain barrel ideas.
A classic wooden whiskey or wine barrel can easily be repurposed as a rain barrel. It is the perfect rain barrel choice for country or vintage cottage garden style.
A wooden barrel provides a more natural and organic look than a metal or plastic barrel and blends more easily into the surrounding landscape.
The rain barrel in this classically styled garden area is both functional and beautiful.
Large clay pots and gardening urns have been used to collect water since ancient times. These types of containers not only serve the purpose of collecting water, but they can beautify the garden at the same time.
Incorporating a beautiful rainwater chain enhances the garden aesthetic.
You can even cover the outside of a rain barrel with a natural looking gabion.
Exaco Slatted Rain Barrel Amazon
If you don’t want to DIY, there are many beautiful rain barrels on the market today.
Stoneware 50 Gallon Rain Barrel Amazon
I love all of these beautiful rain barrels, and I especially love the idea of incorporating more sustainable living practices. Of course making sure the containers are safe and effective is very important, so be sure to do some homework before choosing a container to use as a rain barrel.
After the rain water has been collected you can use it for washing the car, spraying off the deck and porch or watering your lawn and flowers. I love the idea of becoming more sustainable and saving money at the same time!
There are so many interesting ways to incorporating sustainable “green gardening” practices. For example, check out This Old House for ideas on how to use old Christmas trees for mulching, creating a flower bed border and protecting perennials in the winter.
I hope this post has inspired you to consider setting up a rain barrel or even a rainwater harvesting system. If you are interested in purchasing a rain barrel have included some affiliate links below of beautiful rain barrels for your convenience. If you already have a rain barrel or water collecting system in place, I would love to hear from you!
Thanks for visiting today!
Amber
1 Comment
Such amazing photos, perfect barrels for gardening. and these barrels have an aesthetic look too! um looking forward to buying a barrel for my garden. thanks for sharing this beautiful post.
February 26, 2019 at 4:44 am