Whether we are in a drought or a deluge, it helps to know how to create a rain garden. The public is invited to a free rain garden workshop Saturday, October 16, that starts at 9 a.m. in Cole Cinema at the Campus Center at St. Mary's College of Maryland. Participants will then get hands-on instruction outside by helping to install a nearby garden. To pre-register, contact Jacqueline Takacs, 240-393-6508, or jutakacs@smcm.edu.

 A rain garden is a planted depression designed to absorb runoff from such areas as roofs, driveways, and compacted lawn. St. Mary's alumna Debbie Johnson, of Environmental Concern, will teach participants to design and select plants, and give tips on installation and maintenance.

 "You get twice the bang for your buck with rain gardens − they help protect our local rivers and stream (by removing nutrients and sediments) and look beautiful while doing it," said Takacs, a watershed restoration specialist. Come prepared, she added; this could be a wet and dirty workshop.

 Area teachers looking for new ideas for their classrooms are invited to come to a similar free workshop the same day and same place starting at 1 p.m. Please also pre-register.

 St. Mary's College of Maryland, designated the Maryland state honors college in 1992, is ranked one of the best public liberal arts schools in the nation by U.S. News & World Report. More than 2,000 students attend the college, nestled on the St. Mary's River in Southern Maryland.