Bioswales are similar to rain gardens in that their goal is to slow down and filter stormwater. They differ in that they are designed to manage a runoff from large impervious areas, such as a parking lots or roadways.
Because they accommodate large quantities of stormwater, they are constructed differently than rain gardens as far as the types of soils and depth of the construction goes. They are also linear systems.
Bioswales are planted with perennials that can tolerate lots of water and drought conditions.
The City of Charlottetown, working with the Clean Foundation, created demonstration bioswale beside Simmons Arena along North River Road. Half of the bioswale is planted with clovers and grasses and is not mowed. The other half of the bioswale is planted with grasses and perennials (blue flag iris, rudbeckia sp., aster sp., native swamp milkweed) and is weeded and mulched on a regular basis.