A rain garden is a planted depression that allows rainwater runoff from impervious urban areas like roofs, driveways, walkways, parking lots, and compacted lawn areas the opportunity to be absorbed. This reduces rain runoff by allowing stormwater to soak into the ground (as opposed to flowing into storm drains and surface waters which causes erosion, water pollution, flooding, and diminished groundwater). They can be designed for specific soils and climates. The purpose of a rain garden is to improve water quality in nearby bodies of water. Rain gardens can cut down on the amount of pollution reaching creeks and streams by up to 30%.

Native plants are recommended for rain gardens because they generally do not require fertilizer and are more tolerant of one’s local climate, soil, and water conditions, and attract local wildlife such as native birds. The plants — a selection of wetland edge vegetation, such as wildflowers, sedges, rushes, ferns, shrubs and small trees — take up excess water flowing into the rain garden. Water filters through soil layers before entering the groundwater system. Root systems enhance infiltration, maintain or even augment soil permeability, provide moisture redistribution, and sustain diverse microbial populations involved in biofiltration. Also, through the process of transpiration, rain garden plants return water vapor to the atmosphere. A more wide-ranging definition covers all the possible elements that can be used to capture, channel, divert, and make the most of the natural rain and snow that falls on a property. The whole garden can become a rain garden, and all of the individual elements that we deal with in detail are either components of it, or are small-scale rain gardens in themselves.

Motohiro Hata (秦基博, Hata Motohiro^?, born 11 October 1980) is a Japanese singer-songwriter. He debuted under the major label BMG Japan in 2006 with the single "Synchro" (シンクロ, Shinkuro^?).

Hata is the youngest of three brothers. He moved to Yokohama when he was 2. He began playing guitar at 3, after his eldest brother got 3,000 yen from a friend. In junior high school, he began writing songs, and in high school started working fully as a musician.

In 1999, he performed at his first big concert at the F.A.D Yokohama live house, after a referral by one of his friends.

In 2004, he released an independent EP, "Orange no Haikei no Akai Seibutsu" (オレンジの背景の赤い静物, Red Object with an Orange Background^?). In 2006 he was signed to Augusta Records after catching the attention of one of the staff members. He was the opening act of Augusta Camp 2006 in July. He debuted with the single "Synchro" (シンクロ, Shinkuro^?).

His 2008 single "Kimi, Meguru, Boku" (キミ、メグル、ボク, You, Turn, Me^?), was his first top 20 hit, reaching #15 on Oricon charts. "Kimi, Meguru, Boku" was used as the opening theme for the anime series Itazura na Kiss. Since then, he has had six top 20 singles and two top 10 albums.

Mamoru Fujisawa (藤澤 守, Fujisawa Mamoru^?), known professionally as Joe Hisaishi (久石 譲, Hisaishi Jō^?, born December 6, 1950), is a composer and director known for over 100 film scores and solo albums dating back to 1981.

While possessing a stylistically distinct sound, Hisaishi's music has been known to explore and incorporate different genres, including minimalist, experimental electronic, European classical, and Japanese classical. Lesser known are the other musical roles he plays; he is also a typesetter, author, arranger, and head of an orchestra.

He is best known for his work with animator Hayao Miyazaki, having composed scores for many of his films including Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984), Castle in the Sky (1986), My Neighbor Totoro (1988), Kiki's Delivery Service (1989), Porco Rosso (1992), Princess Mononoke (1997), Spirited Away (2001), Howl's Moving Castle (2004) and Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea (2008). He is also recognized for the soundtracks he has provided for filmmaker 'Beat' Takeshi Kitano, including A Scene at the Sea (1991), Dolls (2002), Kikujiro (1999), Hana-bi (1997), Kids Return (1996), and Sonatine (1993).