the rain garden

​​Rancho Morado has significantly more area outside it’s walls than many of the other HOAs in RillitoBend.  This is the result of the neighboring communities working with the developer to save the old mesquites on the edge of the property and preserve the some of the remaining riparian tree cover that had been cut down over the years in the neighborhood.  The Association’s boundary is actually close to the tree line about halfway from the wall to the edge of Cactus Blvd.  It is the responsibility of the Association to maintain the area from the property wall to the edge of the street (City Code Chapter 25). While Tucson experienced its ongoing drought, the maintenance of the trees became a concern.   A plan was made to develop swales around the trees and checkdams to slow down the stormwater and let it seep into the surrounding soil.  During the 2021 monsoon, a bloom of vegetation emerged on the site and became a focus of neighborhood attention.  The term ‘Rain Garden’ seemed appropriate and we have adopted it. Members of the neighborhood worked with the Associations landscape committee to develop a plan for maintaining the area.  The Watershed Management Group led a workshop for neighbors to learn to build checkdams to slow down the water coming down the road and provide water for the trees. Most of the plants that grew were native plants that provide food and habitat for many of the area’s birds and other critters.  The plants were all identified and information on them placed in a website that can be found at https://www.plantsmap.com/organizations/25668/plants.  The area is now maintained by a combination of volunteer labor to hand weed and maintain plants in the Associations property and the landscaping company keeping the public right of way clear. We welcome members of the Association to join the neighborhood maintenance crew.