Easy Gardening. Low Maintenance, Low Water, Low Stress

Take a close look at the photo beside this text. In the illustration from Environment Canada, the 18 liter water jug signifies all of the water in the world, and the three teaspoons illustrate how much of it is fresh water available for our use. Let that sink in a minute and then read the following, excerpted from the Colorado State University pamphlet on water usage:

"Outdoor water use accounts for about 55 percent of the residential water use in urban areas along the Front Range, most of which is used on turf. As a percentage of total water use in the urban Front Range, outdoor water accounts for about 40 percent of all urban water use. Many Colorado residents use over 200 gallons of water per capita per day. In contrast, residents in Arizona use 160 gallons per capita per day (20 percent less than most Colorado residents). Water conservation is vital to enhancing the efficiency of how we use water". The rest of the article is well worth reading at:
www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/consumer/09952.html

Even though it is specific to Colorado, it's a great one for putting things into perspective when it comes to water usage around the home, and why you should consider low water gardening.

The Canadian City of Calgary, Alberta recommends the following points in its brochure "Water Wise Gardening":

- Design for water conservation by grouping similar need plants together.
- Improve your soil quality by adding compost or organic material.
- Cut back on the space allocated to lawn.
- Select plants that are native to your area.
- Mulch to reduce the evaporation of water.
- When you do water, water wisely.

If that isn't enough to encourage you, think about the savings in money you will have if you don't have to buy fertilizer, pesticides and gas for the lawnmower. Then you can add on the savings at the garden centres every spring as you only have to buy a few perennials for your special spot, not the whole garden!

And of course, you can't forget the extra time you save. Your time is valuable. You will save it not having to mow, water, rake, fertilize, trim, weed, aerate or use the weed-eater on anything more than the small patch of lawn you saved.

When you decide to change to xeriscaping practices for your garden, you don't have to work on the whole garden. Especially not in the beginning! Are you crazy? This is supposed to be about EASY gardening - right?

Pick One Area.
Particularly if you have one area that is always a struggle to keep looking good. It could be the one spot that never gets shade; the space under that big tree that never gets enough sun or rain; a sloping area or one that has less than ideal soil quality. Just work on that one area first.

Full sun areas are a good place to start. Changing these into xeriscape ones will have the biggest impact on your water consumption. Check with local nurseries to see what native drought tolerant plants they suggest. Many nurseries these days will have a list of species of plants, shrubs and trees that are suitable for your specific climate zone. Some nurseries will even stock a supply and be very happy to get you started. If they don't, perhaps they can give you names of nurseries that stock seeds to be mail-ordered.

Take a look at the plants and shrubs that grow naturally in the environment without the aid of irrigation. Take a good look. There are lots of natural grasses that look impressive in clumps or swaths. You may also be surprised to see some plants growing naturally that you already have in your garden and you have been watering them unnecessarily. In my area, lilacs are a good example. Given the right environment, they will grow naturally without irrigation here, but when we plant them in the garden behind the petunias and irises, we water them all together even though we don't need to.

The following suggestions on how the begin the process come from the City of Toronto:

"Determining the right natural landscape for you.

Take time to decide how you are going to use your site before selecting a natural landscape to ensure it will work with your site conditions and expectations.

Know your site
Map the physical aspects of your yard to show sunny and shady areas, drainage paths, poorly drained areas, slopes and flat sections, windy areas, position of existing trees, shrubs, gardens, soil types and surrounding boundaries.

Decide your site needs/goals
Do you want some lawn as a play area, outdoor dining space, or garden? Relate these needs back to the physical aspects of your site to ensure compatibility.

Select your groundcover
Make your choices based on seasonal bloom, colour, plants that can be viewed throughout the year, drainage conditions, rate of spread (certain types can be invasive) and exposure. Try going "native" to reduce the need for water, fertilizer and pesticides".

And don't get exasperated by thinking that all you have to choose from is grass or weeds! There is an abundance of beautiful wildflowers that look stunning when in bloom in great swaths in the middle of the wilderness. The trick is to find the ones you like, the ones that suit your soil. And there is help to do that. Many Universities have botanical gardens with a department devoted to native plants. Search out your closest and see what they have to offer. You will probably find lists of drought tolerant plants specifically suited to your climate zone.

The Steps so far:

1. Decide which area of your garden you are going to tackle first.
2. Write down the attributes of the area (ie. gets sun all day, sandy soil, open to winds).
3. Take your list with you to the local plant suppliers and greenhouses.
4. Ask them what plants they would recommend for a low water, low maintenance garden under these conditions.
5. Get the staff to point out the plants to you so you can decide whether you like them or not.

None of this has to be a quick decision. You can start planning in the Fall, and not lift a finger until next Spring. And, don't be worried by the fact that you only have two or three attributes on the list. If the nursery staff need more information, they will guide you in finding out the answers to what they need to know. After all, they want to sell you plants. It is in their interest to be as helpful as possible.

Why So Much About Xeriscaping?
Because when you work with nature, instead of against it, you spend less time and effort trying to maintain the status of your garden. Mother Nature really does want to co-operate so stop making it so hard for her. Easy gardening- remember? There are mini climate zones everywhere. Work with them. It doesn't take the intelligence of a rocket scientist, it just requires a little careful observation. Take the opportunity to relax with the garden you have. Watch it. Watch how the weather affects it. Do you have areas that get more rain than others because there is no protection? More wind damage in storms? More hours of sunshine? Just observe and think about where those spots are and how you might use them to your advantage. There is no point in putting plants that require little water in a spot that is damp most of the time. Get to know your garden. Anyway - it gives you an excuse just to sit back in that lawn chair and enjoy the weather while you are watching your garden!

Rather than attack the whole yard at one time, I chose a space at the front of my yard that gets sun almost all day in the summer time. The ground is poor for growing (I am sure there was a river running through here at some point by the look of the gravel and boulders!), and with the heat of summer it is impossible to get grass to grow. So rather than fight with it, I decided to rip out the 'grass' that was there and take advantage of some xeriscape ideas.

I have 6 evergreens in my small plot, and thus I also have cones dropping. Instead of raking up the cones and sending them to the landfill, I decided I would make use of them as mulch. Part of the area I ripped the grass out of is now covered with cones from my fir trees.

After ripping up the grass I placed several layers of newspaper down and then rolled out landscape cloth to cover it. This is also a new (to me) technique, as I have previously had problems with grass and weeds coming up through the landscape cloth, so decided to try this idea. The newspaper is supposed to help keep the light away from any seeds or roots that may remain in the soil under the cloth. Lets hope it works!

On the remaining area I bought bags of bark mulch to lay down, using the same newspaper and cloth method. To mark a border around the patch I made use of the rocks and boulders retrieved when digging holes for the plants I put in. For the plants, I dug larger holes than necessary (before I placed the cloth down) and filled with some good garden soil once the rocks were removed. Using plants and grasses that require little water and are natural to our area, will mean that I have much less watering to do.

Get creative when you are doing your yard work this year! See if you can make it easier on yourself and environmentally intelligent at the same time.

UPDATE: Some weeds still come through, but I find that it only occurs where they can creep between the layers of newspaper (or where the deer have walked and broken through with their hooves!). I have also found that as time goes on and I pull out the ones that do come through, fewer weeds poke through the next time around. So next time I use this method, I will be certain to give plenty of overlap with the newspaper layers. Aside from this glitch - it works great!

I intend to dig another patch along my fence next year and use the same process. By then I should have enough new cones to cover the area, and as they deteriorate, each year's new crop can be added on top of the existing ones. Saves a lot of trips to the dump!

Like any other part of life, if we have a plan it goes easier. When we take a few minutes in the beginning to decide what we want out of our outdoor space, when time comes to do some work in it, we can make the decisions about priorities so much more quickly and easily. Just like gardening itself - if you prepare the soil adequately in the beginning, things grow so much better later on.

So make a plan. Decide the best use of each space, and work on each area one bit at a time. Then you can enjoy! If you work it out with a xeriscape in mind, you can be proud of the fact that you are also saving water.

This is the best time of year to review what has occurred in your garden this year; what you would like to do next year; make your plans and get prepared. You can cut down on the water usage and the labour by planning now. Haul out the graph paper and draw out your yard plan - make notes all over it with ideas of what should be where - cut out examples of the plants and shrubs you want...or better yet...buy yourself a garden journal all set up for you already.

For some ideas, visit my "Fall Garden Planning" lens.