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Shade and Color with Water-Conserving Plants. Walters, J. E.
and B. Backhaus. 1992. Timber Press. Portland, Oregon. pp. 240. (Book)
If you don’t want to go the greywater route, just use
water-conserving plants. What could be more relevant in this time of
earth-warming events than a book with information regarding drought tolerant
plants that require little to no water? Targeted mainly at those folks living in
the southwestern United States, this book provides landscape solutions geared
toward the rainfall of Oregon’s eastern, more arid areas. Many of the plant
choices described in the book will also do well for our area.
The book recommends landscaping that does not involve grass,
proclaiming that garden plants, shrubs, and trees will use less water and become
more attractive naturally and over time for drier climates. This is accomplished
by providing varied layers in the canopy and varied layers in the root zone
where added depth and dimension facilitate weed resistance, minimal evaporation
and maintenance, reduced runoff, and visual dimension… all components of a
healthy landscape capable of surviving adverse weather events. The book is a
handy resource. With 86 pages of alphabetized plants, many of which are
accompanied by photographs, it is useful and entertaining.
How to Install a Rain Garden. August 2002. South River
Federation and the Center for Watershed Protection. Annapolis, Maryland.
(Newsletter)
Here’s an alternative to collecting rainwater in rain barrels:
plant a moisture-absorbing garden! Rain gardens soak up rainwater from the
downspout with the help of native plants. A rain garden allows 30% more water to
soak into the ground than a conventional lawn, which restores the groundwater
supply, reduces pollution through plants’ natural filtration, provides habitat,
and saves the money and energy required to maintain a lawn. This is a passive
system for saving energy that is compounded by eliminating the need to water,
mow, or otherwise maintain a conventional grass lawn. This article provides a
short three-step how-to process for installing a rain garden. Native plants for
the state of Maryland are suggested in this article but you can find plants
native to the Pacific Northwest at your local garden store.
Drip Irrigation for Every Landscape and All Climates. Kourik, R. 1992.
Independent Publisher’s Group, Inc. Chicago, Illinois. pp. 128. (Book)
Then there is the option of just keeping all those
water-thirsty plantings and using drip irrigation. Kourik’s book is fun and easy
to read with bits of humor to amuse us along the way. He describes the benefits
of a drip irrigation system from the reduction in water use to an increase in
crop yield and thoroughly covers the parts and equipment needed for a drip
irrigation system, including step-by-step instructions for assembly.
The book covers all concepts necessary for success with drip
irrigation including guidelines on high temperature-related hose shrinkage,
appropriate distances between plants and emitters, watering duration and
frequency according to plant and soil type. It also covers drip irrigation for
large trees or shrubs and container plants, and optimal soil moisture levels.
Kourik then tackles proper maintenance of the system and
offers formulas and charts to determine optimal watering levels. As you can
imagine, artificial irrigation systems do not ‘grow’ with the landscape and
therefore proper maintenance, formulas, and charts for optimal water levels and
types of plants, must be maintained. Various appendices provide quick references
helpful for irrigation:
- Appendix #1: Maximum Length of Tubing
- Appendix #2: Drip Irrigation Flow Rates
- Appendix #3: Spot Spitter Flow Rates
- Appendix #4: Soil Percolation Rates
- Appendix #5: Soil Penetration Rates
- Appendix #6: Transpiration Water Requirements of Annual
Crops
- Appendix #7: Annual Transpiration Requirements of Various
Perennial Crops
Now that you are going to try to drip irrigate, how will you
regulate the water in your new system? Where can we learn about irrigation
controllers and how to select the right one? See this EPA site. Also, learn here
about the proper use to assure maximum water efficiency (growth with less
water). The benefits of efficient watering are clearly outlined on this website,
but those particularly beneficial to biodiversity preservation include reduced
runoff of storm water and irrigation water that carries topsoil, fertilizers,
and pesticides into lakes, rivers, and streams, and conservation of natural
resources, and preservation of habitat for plants and wildlife such as fish and
waterfowl.
Water Conservation: Save Water with Efficient Systems and
Healthy Plants. April 1998. United States Department of Agriculture National
Resources Conservation Service. (Newsletter)
We like this for its practical advice on saving water. The focus of the article
is backyard watering and it suggests using xeriphytic species (plants that like
that dry space) for landscaping, mulching, adding water-retaining, organic
material to the soil, and installing windbreaks and fences. Other suggestions
include watering in early mornings, and collecting rain from downspouts for use
in the garden. The article gives examples of plants that are hardy in low water
conditions and outlines efficient watering methods and irrigation systems.
So, not having enough water in the soil during those summer
months, is the problem? For those particularly dry times that our region may
expect to see more of in the future, “How Dry It Is” discusses sustainable
landscaping for arid climates, and assists in getting our landscapes through
those particularly dry times. It specifically focuses on water conservation and
what to expect from (and require of) a landscape designer when designing for a
sustainable, arid landscape.
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