During the long hot days of August, planning — not planting — is the most prudent thing to do.
August can be a rough month for gardeners, and not just because of the heat. By this time, many are just itching to get out in their yards to enhance outdoor living spaces.
The good news is you don’t have to wait too long before you can start making those water-saving landscape changes. The best time to plant — from the end of September through October — is only about a month away!
And here’s a hint to help you plan: The most effective change you can make is to replace as much of your lawn with landscape beds of hardy, drought-tolerant plants. It’ll make a dramatic difference not only on your water bill, but also in the look of your landscape.
Here are a few things to consider when deciding which part of your landscape to transform.
- Curb appeal. Visualize where a garden bed would complement the rest of your landscape and enhance your home’s architecture.
- View from inside. How would the bed’s placement look from your favorite vantage point inside your home?
- Underutilized area. Are there large spots you visit only when the grass has been mowed? These areas are ideal for conversion from turf to plants and/or mulch.
- Sun vs. shade. Even a modest amount of shade can prevent grass from growing. Instead, create beds of shade-tolerant plants that can thrive and look good doing it.
- Supersize it. Remove the turf surrounding your current beds and expand the beds you have.
Once you’ve chosen a grassy area to convert, use a water hose, electrical cord, tape or water-based paint to outline the shape of your future water-saving bed. You may want to leave the layout on the ground for a day or two to make any adjustments.
Then you can move to the next step toward saving water — getting rid of the grass! Intimidating? Not with a little help from our step-by-step how-to videos.
If you need help with design and plant selection, peruse our Plant by Numbers plans. They’re designed according to site conditions and areas of interest in your yard. Help with plant selection and maintenance tips are included.
Even better, these plans are perfect to use with our WaterSaver Landscape Coupons.
