A recent census reported that the Dallas-Fort Worth area is the fastest-growing metropolitan region in the nation. With a booming population and ongoing drought conditions, it’s no surprise that many North Texas cities have implemented watering restrictions for residents. While these limitations can be frustrating for homeowners eager to maintain lush landscapes, Splendid Gardens is here to show you how to create a thriving, beautiful landscape— even with watering restrictions.
We believe that some of the key factors to having a thriving landscape in North Texas even with limited water usage are efficient use of water, selecting plant varieties that are well suited, using mulch, and smart landscape design.
Smart Landscaping Tips for Drought Conditions
1. Efficient Use of Water
Urban areas of Texas traditionally use nearly 25% of their fresh water supply to irrigate landscapes and gardens. Much of this water is applied inefficiently and is wasted instead of effectively watering plants. Also many homeowners overwater their lawns, leading to weak, diseased and unhealthy plants. Plants actually do best if they are watered infrequently and deeply. When plants are watered less often they put down deeper roots. Alternatively, frequent watering causes the roots to be shallow, and when the ground doesn’t have a chance to dry out between waterings the plants are more prone to fungal infections or other diseases. For these reasons, watering less often is actually better for plants!
Watering once or twice a week can actually be best for plants, as long as you don’t drastically cut back on your watering habits in the hottest part of the summer. Springtime is a perfect time to train your lawn and landscape to put down deeper roots by watering less frequently and more deeply. You may have noticed that our clay soil does not absorb water quickly, leading to an excess runoff. One way to water your plants deeply is the “cycle and soak” method which breaks up the watering times to give the water time to soak in, leading to less runoff. Instead of watering one area for 20 minutes, break it up into 5 minute intervals with time between for the water to soak in. Many irrigation systems have this feature built in.
Another way to water more efficiently is by using drip irrigation, which is designed to water slowly and deeply and only target the specific areas that need water. This can also be helpful in preventing weeds by not watering the parts of the beds where plants are not growing.
The time of day you water also can help your plants use the water more effectively. Watering in the hottest part of the day will lead to more water being lost to evaporation, and also in the hottest months having water on plants can actually scald the plants. The best time of day to water is early morning before the sun comes up.
Many local cities are offering free irrigation audits to check your irrigation system to see what adjustments need to be made to water more efficiently. Since most lawns receive twice as much water as they require for a healthy appearance, having your sprinkler system checked and making some changes to how you water can make a big difference on your water usage, without sacrificing the health and beauty of your lawn.
The Right Plant Choices to Stay Green During Water Restrictions
2. Select the Right Plants
One of the best ways to save water is to select plants that are well suited to our North Texas weather and soil conditions. It is also very important to select plants that will thrive in the microclimates in your own yard. Which side of the house are they growing on? Do they get morning or afternoon sun? When you select the right varieties that are suited for our climate and for your specific growing conditions in your yard, they will do well with little input.
Selecting plants that are native to our area or adapted to our climate is a great way to choose plants that will naturally thrive here. Native plants will naturally do well with our weather and soil. They have a very deep root system so that they can survive for a long time without water in drought conditions. They are also less susceptible to pest problems as they have adapted to the pest populations here, while at the same time attracting the kinds of insects you do want in your yard. Pollinators and other beneficial insects are very attracted to native plants.
Choosing plants for your landscape that are either native or adapted to growing in our unique growing conditions is a great way to have a beautiful landscape that can thrive even with less water.
Smart Landscape Designs for Drought Conditions
3. Mulch
Using 2-3” of shredded hardwood mulch in your landscape beds has many benefits for your plants. It traps the moisture in the soil so it does not evaporate as quickly, so you won’t need to water as frequently. It adds a layer of insulation to keep the soil cooler during the summer and warmer in the winter. Mulch also breaks down and turns into compost, adding vital nutrients to the soil. Mulch not only adds a nice finished look to your beds, but also protects and nourishes your plants while conserving water.
4. Smart Landscape Designs
A smart way to approach your landscape design is to consider using 1/3 of your space for lawn, 1/3 for landscape beds (shrubs, flowers, ground covers, etc.) and 1/3 for hardscapes (decks, patios, walkways, etc.). Since turf grass requires more water and maintenance than traditional landscape plants, you may want to consider having smaller areas of grass or switching to varieties of grass that require less water like Zoysia grass. Another reason it can be beneficial to expand landscape beds and hardscapes is that as trees mature they make a lot more shade. You may have an area that used to have healthy grass but now that it is shadier the grass isn’t getting enough sunlight, so some shade-tolerant plantings or hardscape may be a better choice for a thriving landscape.
Splendid Gardens has years of experience of creating landscapes that look beautiful year-round and thrive in our unique North Texas growing conditions. We believe that new watering restrictions do not restrict having a beautiful landscape. We would love to help you select the right plants for your unique space and design a yard that will flourish for years to come.
Splendid Gardens provides professional landscape services to Dallas and surrounding cities in North Texas. We take great pride in delivering customized services to each client. Our experienced teams provide a variety of services including landscape design, installation, scheduled maintenance services, custom flagstone and redesign of existing landscapes. We actively give back to the community by volunteering our services to local projects in need.