Xeriscaping: Drought-Tolerant Landscape Ideas
Many homeowners dream of having lush green grass in their yards. Unfortunately, maintaining traditional lawns consumes much of a yard’s water use and requires extensive upkeep such as mowing, fertilizing, weed control and pest management. As water shortages become more prevalent and droughts more of an everyday occurrence across more regions of the US, opting for low water-requiring plants like xeriscaping is becoming an attractive solution. First coined by Denver Water Department back in 1981 as an approach that combined plant selection/design with techniques intended to minimize water usage as well as minimize soil evaporation from soil surface areas.
Xeriscaping involves creating a landscape that’s both visually appealing and functional, using hardscape features such as patios, walkways, decks and retaining walls as hardscape elements. Next comes planting drought-tolerant plants with colorful blooms to bring visual interest and draw pollinators in. Finally, including trees, shrubs and groundcovers can help create an appealing yet low maintenance garden that attracts both people and pollinators alike.
When selecting plants for your xeriscape design, seek native species which thrive in your region’s climate. As these native varieties will already have been adapted to your yard’s specific conditions, they’ll be more resilient against disease and pests – not to mention more eco-friendly! Additionally, try to avoid invasive species which could spread throughout your yard and disrupt its ecosystems.
Once you’ve selected your plants, be sure to consider their sun or shade needs as well as water requirements. Furthermore, keep the conditions of your soil in mind, which could impact watering requirements; clay soils for instance hold onto water longer before draining off than sandy ones – for this reason alone you should invest in a home soil testing kit to get a fuller understanding of its health in your yard.
An essential component of xeriscaped landscaping, mulch helps control weed growth while retaining soil moisture. When choosing the material for your mulch layer, go organic such as wood chips or compost – thick layers will even slow evaporation rates, keeping soil cooler while encouraging plant roots to remain damper for longer.
Natural rock and gravel in your garden is an effective way to achieve a xeriscaped aesthetic while adding texture and visual interest. Stones will allow water to pass through with minimal topsoil loss while helping prevent erosion as well as creating an effective barrier against weeds.
To further decrease water usage, install a drip irrigation system that delivers just the right amount of water to each plant at just the right time. This type of irrigation is especially helpful when used on small, shallow-rooted plants that need less irrigation such as low-growing groundcovers. Or alternatively you could install a sprinkler system which waters larger areas more evenly – although this method may be less efficient and costlier; with proper settings in place it could still save water!