Landscaping for Clean Water Garden Maintenance Workshop
Join us for a Garden Maintenance workshop providing season specific information on how to maintain and promote the health, performance, and beauty of your garden. Maintenance workshops apply to raingarden, native garden, or native shoreline planting projects.
2022 Maintenance Workshops
- Thursday, March 24 – 5:00 p.m.
- Monday, April 25 – 5:00 p.m.
The Garden Maintenance Workshops are provided FREE and open to all – Dakota County residency is not required!
Landscaping for Clean Water Intro Course 2022
Need some inspiration for your garden, but don’t know where to start? Want to learn how incorporating native plants into your garden can add amazing water quality benefits to your property? Looking to exercise your green thumb, but want advice on planting pollinator habitat? Knowledge gained through the Landscaping for Clean Water program will inform and empower you to create a raingarden, native pollinator garden, or shoreline planting that will bring beauty and great environmental benefits to your property this year and for many to come!
In 2022, the Landscaping for Clean Water program will celebrate its 16th year of educating and assisting residents to install beautiful and low-maintenance plantings. Over the years, we have met with close to 5,200 landowners and installed over 660 projects in neighborhoods all around the county. This program is offered to residents through a partnership between the Dakota County SWCD, and local cities and watershed organizations.
This year’s suite of programming – Introduction to Clean Water Class, Design Course, and Maintenance Workshop – will provide skills and resources to landowners at every stage of their gardening journey.
The free Introduction to Clean Water class focuses on general water quality practices of raingardens, native gardens, and shoreline stabilizations. The classes provide an overview of local water quality challenges and provide beautiful and practical ways of reducing runoff pollutants that are causing issues. It also includes information on cost-share opportunities available to Dakota County residents.
After completing the Introduction to Clean Water class, you can enroll in the Landscaping for Clean Water Design Course. This course is a great for those interested in learning about garden planning from the experts, whether you want to know more about site design, plant selection, raingarden installation, or the best plants for our landscape. Participants walk away with a ready-to-install garden!
The Landscaping for Clean Water Maintenance Workshop provides season specific information on how to maintain and promote the health, performance, and beauty of your garden. Maintenance workshops apply to raingarden, native garden, or native shoreline restoration projects.
Water Story Sharing
Explore ways of experiencing water through shared storytelling. Listen to local audio stories, exchange stories with each other and explore the different types of relationships we have with water. Geared for adults. Registration required.
MPCA Smart Salting for Parking Lots & Sidewalks Certification Training
This MPCA Smart Salting Certification Training is an opportunity to learn more efficient winter maintenance best practices (BMPs) while taking a comprehensive look at the many aspects for managing snow & ice on parking lots and sidewalks. The training will also cover the new chloride requirements in the recently released MS4 permit, as well as resources available to help you reduce your salt use.
The training will be held in-person.
Who should attend?
- Hands-on public or private winter maintenance staff
- Those who hire or supervise winter maintenance staff
- Private contractors
- Those who may influence others or are interested in making a difference at work
What you’ll learn:
- Environmental impacts of chloride
- Equipment calibration
- Using weather condition info more efficiently
- Application rates
- Plowing and physical removal
- BMPs for storing materials
- De-icing and anti-icing
- Regulatory issues and managing liability
- Customer and staff educational resources
- Success stories
Earn the MPCA Smart Salting for Parking Lots & Sidewalks certification by taking the optional online test at the end of training and be listed on the MPCA Smart Salting webpage. Certificates are sent to Minnesota participants only and are valid for 5 years.
MPCA permittees are allowed registration preference. If the training exceeds capacity, those that are not permittees will be put on a waitlist and notified accordingly.
Training questions? Contact the MPCA Smart Salting Training Program smartsalting.pca@state.mn.us.
This training is hosted by Dakota County and the MPCA Chloride Reduction Program. with Clean Water Fund and the Environment & Natural Resources Trust Fund.
