Water-Smart Home Landscapes

While many consider green lawns synonymous with the typical suburban home, most types of grasses require large amounts of water. These water requirements are even more impactful during the hot, drought-prone months of summer. Transitioning from the perfectly manicured lawn to water-smart landscapes that combine native beauty, ecological function, and reduced water usage is an essential part of every sustainable home.

Natives Plants First

Plants native to a region or specific ecosystem will most likely have developed a sense of resiliency over the years of evolution and natural selection. Once established, most native plants will survive with nothing more than the average rainfall that your region receives. For example, in the desert southwest, native landscaping would largely be modeled around incorporating cacti and other drought-tolerant species. Instead of turfgrass dependent on almost daily watering, cactus landscapes can include a diverse variety of desert plants and gravel mulch that reduce the need for irrigation.

Create Hydrozones

While focusing on native plants will reduce the amount of water your yard needs, having a few exotic plants is an indulgence that homeowners will love. Designing your yard landscape so that vegetation is grouped according to similar watering needs will also reduce your outdoor water use. These "hydro zones" might allow you to direct a household greywater recycling system towards a specific area of the landscape where water-heavy plants are located.

Improve Soil and Utilize Mulch

Healthy soils will always need less watering. One study finds that each 1 percent increase in soil organic matter helps soil hold 20,000 gallons more water per acre. One of the best ways to increase the humus content of your soil is by applying mulch over your lawn and around plants. Organic mulch helps eliminate water evaporation and will break down into healthy topsoil over time. Instead of taking bags of autumn leaves out to the curb, consider using those as a mulch around your trees and plants.

Xeriscaping: The Ideal 

In the Greek Language, "Xeros" means dry. Xeriscaping is a landscaping option wherein homeowners attempt to create a landscape that requires absolutely no supplemental irrigation outside the rain that falls on your yard. In some wetter areas of the country, xeriscaping might mean that you have to change your Bluegrass or Bahia grass for Buffalo grass. These types of grass have reduced water requirements. 

In drier and more arid regions, xeriscaping might require homeowners to eliminate turf grass and implement plants that can survive in desert-like conditions.