How to Reduce Water Use in your Landscape

Q:  My water bill was pretty high last summer.  Is there anything I can do now to reduce water use this summer?

A:  Yes.  There are several very effective ways to save water. 

1) Examine your existing plant choices and rank them according to water use.  You may want to eliminate the high water use species in favor of more Colorado-adapted varieties.   I have all my high water use plants in one area, on one zone, protected from wind and well mulched.  It’s not too late to play musical chairs with your plants.

2) Water early in the morning to reduce evaporation.

3) Deep, infrequent watering (2-3 times/week) is better than shallow, daily watering.  I’m surprised at how many people have been advised by “experts” to water 10 minutes in the morning and 10 minutes in the evening.  When you split your watering schedule like this, the water doesn’t penetrate very deeply, encouraging shallow root systems causing your plants to suffer during our hot dry summers.

4) Use drip irrigation or soaker hoses where possible.  These methods require much longer run times as they apply the water very slowly.

5) Apply a moisture-retaining mulch approximately 2” deep to conserve water, moderate soil temps, and suppress weeds. 

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Read our Q & As with Keith Funk answering common Colorado gardening questions here. You can also hear him on the Garden Wise Radio Show