When rain pours over streets and driveways, it often sweeps oil, fertilizer, and trash straight into nearby lakes and rivers. One TikTok user is showing how a little neighborhood green space can stop that damage before it starts.
Minnesota-based TikToker Kendramn_nature (@kendramn_nature) posted a short video highlighting a small but powerful solution: a curb cut rain garden. These shallow plant-filled basins are designed to capture and filter runoff before it enters storm drains. In her clip, stormwater from a nearby road flows into the garden, a gentle slope guiding it through native plants and soil instead of sending it straight to local waterways.
@kendramn_nature Another rain garden I helped plant last year, some plants didn't make it and need to be replaced but overall it's doing good. Stormwater runoff from the nearby road is going into here instead of into the storm drain, which would dump it right into our lakes and rivers. Instead the water is being held, slowed down, soaking into the ground, and being used by plants. When stormwater flows directly into a lake, it brings a lot with it: nutrients that feed algae blooms, fast flows that cause shoreline erosion from water level fluctuations, warmer water that can stress fish and other aquatic life, and sediment that clouds up the water. We need more green infrastructure like this to protect our lakes, rivers, and streams. #raingarden #stormwatersolutions #cleanwaterstartshere #greeninfrastructure #nativeplants ♬ original sound - kendramn_nature
"This is where stormwater should go instead of dumping directly into our lakes and rivers," she explains in the video. "It can be stored, slowed down, and soaked up by plants and soil."
The caption adds that while some plants didn't survive the winter, the garden is "doing good" overall, and it's keeping polluted runoff out of nearby ecosystems.
Rain gardens are part of a growing movement toward green infrastructure — natural systems that manage water the way nature intended. Beyond preventing erosion and algae blooms, they also recharge groundwater and create small habitats for pollinators. Even partial replacements of traditional lawns with native plants can make a major difference, reducing maintenance costs and water bills.
Native gardens also feed bees and butterflies that pollinate crops, forming the foundation of our food system. For homeowners, that means healthier yards that work with the environment — not against it.
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The comments on Kendra's post reflect that enthusiasm.
"Love this!" one viewer wrote.
Another added, "Let it make beautiful spaces and percolate to actually help the groundwater."
Simple, low-cost changes like this show that sustainability doesn't always require sweeping infrastructure projects. Sometimes, it's as easy as letting your curb cut do the work.
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