Going green, without a lawn

Virtually all the bungalows in Jennie and Chas Rightmyer’s Kensington neighborhood have well-tended lawns out front – part of the American dream, along with picket fences and two-car garages.

But increasingly dire warnings about statewide water shortages prompted the Rightmyers to remove their Bermuda grass. They are replacing it with a drought-tolerant garden that should be completed by month’s end.

The couple hope the new landscaping will cut their overall water use by more than 20 percent.

“It just feels like the time has come,” Jennie Rightmyer said.

Californians should end their love affair with lawns, said water officials, lawmakers, conservationists and landscapers. Many of these advocates have promoted native plants for years, but they now sense a greater potential for change because of the public’s growing concerns about global warming, drought and ever-rising water bills.

“It’s the beginning of the end of lawn at home,” said Nan Sterman, who teaches a class called “Bye Bye Grass” at the Water Conservation Garden in El Cajon.

Last week, the garden’s managers started a hotline for people to seek advice from Sterman about “water-smart” landscaping.

“It’s not just the early adopters anymore,” Sterman said. “It’s (average) people who are really getting the sense that we have to do something . . . which tells me that it’s becoming part of the mainstream.”

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Source: Sign On San Diego

Xeriscaping Reduces Environmental Footprint

UNIVERSITY PARK, PA – As Pennsylvania’s dry season arrives, many gardeners fear that their lush landscape will wither under scorching heat. However, a gardening expert in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences says smart landscaping practices can both save water and ensure the garden’s survival.

With dry weather conditions increasing across the country, Penn State Cooperative Extension’s Master Gardeners are promoting the use of xeriscaping, an innovative, low-water gardening system, throughout their communities to help deal with dry weather and promote water conservation.

“Master Gardeners are trying to encourage public awareness of alternative landscaping practices that have positive effects on the environment,” said Robert Kessler, extension educator in horticulture in Franklin County. “They also are working on water recycling through use of rain barrels, which will hold water until it is needed in dry weather.”

Trained by extension educators and faculty, master gardeners are community volunteers that cooperate with service agencies and community groups on gardening projects, while promoting environmentally friendly techniques.

Providing a sun-loving landscape ideal for dry climates, xeriscaping is a low-maintenance gardening technique that incorporates a wide variety of plants to create a lush landscape. “Xeriscaping creates a beautiful landscape with native plants that have low water requirements,” Kessler said. “Most of these plants do not require irrigation in dry weather, making ideal additions for low-water areas.”

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Source: Gant Daily

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