Rain barrels are an effective way to manage and conserve water on your property, but their practicality often means that they end up looking industrial, worn, and overall unappealing most of the time.

The installed rain barrel was painted brown and fitted with a brass spigot for feeding the garden hose. Putting a scrap lattice on its sides isn’t necessary, but does make the setup look more ...

Roman Gonzalez is the creator of the urban gardening blog MrBrownThumb, founder of the Chicago Seed Library, and a co-founder of One Seed Chicago. Rainwater harvesting relieves our aging sewer systems ...