As summer heats up, so do the plants in our yard. To keep them green and thriving, many of us resort to the same thing: water. But the amount of water we put into our yards is significant – and it keeps adding up. In Texas, for example, the city of Dallas estimates during the summer 50 percent of all drinking water is used to water lawns (check out Savedallaswater.com for more details).
There is an easy way to reduce that need: use plants that are drought-resistant or are native to your area. After all, if a plant is native to your area it's already accustomed to living off the amount of rain typically to your region – and can survive without any added water. To thrive, native and drought-resistant species can need a small amount of added water, but that amount will be a very small fraction of the water that traditional landscapes soak up.
The best way to find local and drought-resistant plants is to head to your local nursery and ask experts who know about local species. You can do some research ahead of time, too, by looking for Native Plant Societies in your region. The North Carolina Native Plant Society, for example, recommends trees, shrubs, ground covers, wildflowers and ferns that are native to the state. Look here to see what's right for that area as an example.You can also look at a broader regional breakdown at Water Use It Wisely, a campaign to encourage water conservation, which has a list of low water use plants broken into regional and local choices.
You can do even more if you are building a new home or redoing much of your landscaping. Because turf grass soaks up a majority of the water our landscapes use, one of the best ways to conserve water is to limit the amount of turf you plant. Opt for larger flowerbeds – with plants grouped together by the amount of water they need – and smaller areas of turf. The species of turf is also important, as some can use drastically more water than others. It’s much easier to ask ahead of time about the water use of the type of turf you plan on using, so that you can make sure your landscape is as water-wise as possible.
Source: BecauseAction.com
