Cisterns: The Original Rain Barrel

June 13, 2015 by Charlie London

cistern-ad-1909Robert Thompson sent in this business card from one of 23 New Orleans business which made cisterns in 1909.  Robert writes, “The original rain barrel! A few even survive today as evidence New Orleans can retain and use rainwater. How about a tank which could slip easily into the crawl space underneath our many shotgun structures…lot of potential storage there.”

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Faubourg St. John neighbor Michael Ward noted,  “I have a company that installs rainwater pillows for under the house, rain barrels, and custom cisterns.  We have been doing it for 8 years.

Mike
New Orleans Bamboo LLC

 Rain water Pillows
New Orleans Bamboo LLC can size and install rainwater pillows in any size from 1000 gallons on up.
For more information on this or other products, call New Orleans Bamboo at 504.486.0052 or email mike(at)nolabamboo.com

 

 Custom Cisterns
New Orleans Bamboo LLC can design and install anything from a rain barrel to cisterns of any size. We are accredited by the American Rainwater Catchment Association.   New Orleans Bamboo is happy to come out to you and give you a free assessment.  They offer maintenance contracts on all of their cisterns. Rain water is a free resource and your gardens and plants will thrive with natural water.     For more information on this or the other products they have, call New Orleans Bamboo at 504.486.0052 or email  mike(at)nolabamboo.com

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Water

Problem: New Orleans is below sea level and sinking, and the city’s pumping system designed to alleviate flooding is often overwhelmed during heavy rains. At 60+ inches of rain per year, the Greater New Orleans area sees some of the highest annual rainfall in the country. Storm runoff during heavy rain events causes flooding that affects the well-being, property, and livelihood of every New Orleans inhabitant. The city’s pumping system expends a colossal amount of resources to pump water, full of pollutants from city streets, into Lake Pontchartrain.

Solution: Harvesting water in rain barrels helps divert some of the water that would otherwise run off of impervious surfaces into storm drains and contribute to street flooding. By catching and recirculating water locally, residents can help manage storm water runoff from their property. Residents can use the storm water around the home and garden, helping them conserve their municipal water use. Green Light plans to implement a small-scale rain barrel program for its backyard gardeners, who can use the water to grow their vegetables.

Green Light New Orleans
8203 Jeannette Street
New Orleans, LA 70118

phone number: 504-324-2429

Filed Under: Featured, HISTORY Tagged With: bayou st john, best neighborhood in New Orleans, cistern, environment, environmental awareness, faubourg st john, manage water, New Orleans, new orleans bamboo, prevent flooding, rain barrel, water management

PLANT A TREE | REDUCE CRIME

December 25, 2012 by Charlie London

Planting a tree on or near your property can reduce flooding!

Trees in our community provide many services beyond the inherent beauty they lend to streets and properties. One of the most overlooked and underappreciated is their ability to reduce the volume of water rushing through gutters and pipes following a storm. This means less investment in expensive infrastructure and – importantly – cleaner water when the runoff reaches rivers, lakes, and bayous.

Details in the link:
http://www.northlandnemo.org/images/800TreeCityUSABulletin_55.pdf

PLANT A TREE AND HELP REDUCE CRIME!

Click here for the original article.

Click here for a PDF from the LSU Ag Center on why you should plant trees

baltimoreThe city of Baltimore’s high crime rate inspired a gritty TV drama. But a new study (Tinyurl.com/TreeCrimeReport) by the University of Vermont’s Transportation Research Center, in Burlington, found that a 10 percent increase in trees in a given area led to a 12 percent decrease in crime. “It’s really pretty striking how strong this relationship is,” says Austin Troy, lead author of the study, published in the journal Landscape and Urban Planning.

Researchers examined the correlation in and around Baltimore using aggregated crime data and combining it with high-resolution satellite images to conduct the analysis. The working hypothesis is that because people enjoy spending time in pleasant outdoor spaces, there are more observers present to hinder criminal activity. Also, a well-maintained landscape seems to send a message that someone may be watching.

To avoid culture bias, the study considered many socioeconomic factors, including housing, age, income and race of residents, as well as variables such as rural versus city setting and population density. The findings should prove helpful to urban planners.

NativeFringeTreeLousiana-500x333Fringetrees are excellent anywhere that a very small tree is needed, such as near a patio, in small yards, or under power lines. Like many white-flowered plants, they look especially nice planted in front of a dark backdrop. They can be used as individual specimens, in groups, in mixed shrub borders or in natural gardens. They are well suited to urban plantings due to pollution tolerance and adaptability to varied soils. Fringetrees are not salt tolerant.

Although fringetrees are adaptable and will grow in most soil types, they prefer moist, deep, well-drained, acidic soils. They grow well in full sun to partial shade. Leaf appearance is best in some shade, but flowering is heaviest in full sun. The ideal compromise would be sun through most of the day, but shade during hot afternoon hours. Fringetrees have low maintenance needs once established.

Due to a naturally strong branch structure fringetrees rarely need pruning. Pruning while young may be desirable if a single stem tree form is preferred. Fringetrees do not transplant well so take care to choose an appropriate permanent location and use proper planting methods. Plant it high, it won’t die!

 

Plant it Low, It Won’t Grow | Plant it High, It Won’t Die

The most important consideration in planting trees and shrubs is the planting depth. Don’t plant too deep!
Plant all trees and shrubs about one inch above the surface of the existing soil. No dirt should be placed on top of the existing roots and nursery soil so as to not smother the root system. Mulch well, leaving a two inch gap around the caliper(s) of the plant.

For the most efficient use of water, construct an earthen berm two to three inches high around the drip zone area of the plant after planting. Water in well after planting!

 

TREES TO PLANT IN NEW ORLEANS

choose-tree

Rain barrels reduce the amount of runoff to the City’s pumps and can reduce your water bill if you are an avid gardener and use a lot of water in your garden. If you connect rain barrels to the downspouts they will be more effective. However, I have one on a stand that still provides a lot of water for the garden. More about rain barrels in the link:
Learn more about rain barrels: CLICK HERE

Also in the photo you will notice open containers that I use to collect rainwater. If you use those, be sure to use the water in them relatively quickly so that you don’t help breed mosquitos. After every rain, remove any standing water from around your home. More about mosquitos in the link: https://fsjna.org/2017/08/remove-standing-water/

New Orleans has a Mosquito Control Board. Learn more in the link below:
http://www.nola.gov/RESIDENTS/Mosquito-Termite-and-Rodent-Control-Board/

Filed Under: CRIME, Featured, HISTORY Tagged With: best neighborhood in New Orleans, crime, flooding, New Orleans, new orleans best neighborhood, rain barrel, tree, tree planting in New Orleans, trees, trees fight crime, trees reduce crime, trees reduce flooding

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