Landscaping our yard adds beauty and value to our home. It’s also beneficial for our well-being, as seeing rich greens and blooms right outside our door can calm us down quickly after finishing a mountain of work and chores.
But as alluring a landscaped yard is, it’s just as demanding to maintain. You have to water the plants regularly, trim the shrubs, mow the grass, and sweep away fallen leaves and other debris. There might also be weeds and pests invading the place, causing headaches and requiring urgent solutions.
And now that it’s the peak of summer in some countries, conserving water is a concern. The heatwave dries out the plants so fast, forcing homeowners to hose down their gardens more frequently than usual. If this is also your problem every summer, here are some tips to help you cut down those water bills, even if you water your plants every day.
1. Use an Adjustable Sprinkler
With a sprinkler, you no longer have to stand under the sun and manually water your plants. Buy an adjustable sprinkler for your landscaping in Pleasant Grove or any other nearby area. Opt for a model that has multiple watering patterns so that every area will be covered with minimal runoff.
2. Grow Drought-Resistant Plants
White fir, yarrow, yucca, and sage are among the plants known to thrive in dry seasons. Consult your local landscaper to know which drought-resistant plants grow well in your area and soil type.
3. Preserve Moisture When Mowing the Grass
Before mowing, set the blades to leave 2-3 inches of grass, and remove the bag. Leaving the grass clippings on the lawn makes them turn into water-retaining mulch, which means that your soil won’t dry out, keeping your plants healthy despite the drought.
4. Fill Bare Patches With Gravel
Exposed bare soil will dry out on a sunny day, so cover them with gravel to preserve the moisture. By doing so, you can cut your waterings in half, allowing you to skip the sprinkler and just opt for a minimal hand-watering.
5. Install a Drip Irrigation System
With a drip irrigation system, the water will go directly to the root zone, which is the part of the plants that actually need the water. While watering the leaves isn’t exactly wrong, it leaves runoffs that could have been saved.
If your budget would allow it, it’s also recommended to upgrade to an irrigation system with a smart controller. It is a weather-based controller that can increase your watering efficiency by up to 40%, enabling you to earn back the high costs of your previous water bills.
6. Collect Rainwater
It tends to drizzle in some areas during the summer, so don’t waste the precious water you’ll get by harvesting the rainwater. Buy a cistern, which is like an upgraded version of an ordinary rain barrel. It has a cover that helps keep away insects, and a pump that speeds up the water flow from the tanks.
7. Recycle Household Water
Don’t throw away the water collected by your dehumidifier yet! You can use those for your next garden watering. Collect clean recycled water from any source as well in five-gallon buckets.
8. Choose Porous Hardscape
Select porous hardscape as you design the hangout areas in your landscape, like the patio. Pebbles and gravel are popular combos that are aesthetically appealing and beneficial for the soil since they allow water to flow freely instead of generating wasteful runoffs.
9. Buy a Water Timer
To avoid overwatering, but a water timer, an inexpensive device that detects the wetness of the soil and automatically shuts off the irrigation system when it has watered the plants enough.
Following these tips and tricks, you can keep your water bills in check without compromising the health of your plants. Don’t just conserve water in the summer; practice it all year round to save more money.