Use rain barrels to collect rain for your garden. You can find them at local discount or home improvement stores. Stick them beneath the gutter down spouts so you can reuse the water to keep your foliage healthy while conserving water at the same time. When you don your garden gloves to dig in the dirt, you’ll be satisfied knowing that you are caring for your plants in an eco-friendly manner.
Choose the Right Plants
Select plants resistant to drought. According to Everyday Health, “some plants are thirstier than others.” To avoid watering your plants all of the time, chose ones that don’t require heavy watering. Consider planting them in a shady spot so they won’t be parched by the sun. Is your ornamental/grazing grass dry if you don’t water it on a consistent basis? You can fill up those patches with drought-resistant varieties that requires less watering.
Select native plants for your garden. The reason is simple. Plants native to your area have had thousands of years to acclimate to the area’s climate, rainfall level, and soil. These types of plants can withstand the onslaught of the sun a bit easier than plants that aren’t native to your part of the country.
Go Easy on the Watering
You may be overwatering your plants, contributing to the wasting of water. If there’s grass growing on the sidewalk, driveway or in your vegetable garden, you’re probably watering too much. And if you step on a patch of land, watch to see if it springs back up. Grass that springs up after you step on it doesn’t need water. In other words, you don’t have to water your pastures every single day.
To be safe, only use a water-efficient spray nozzle for your water hose. Hoses that don’t have nozzles waste around 8 gallons or more of water before you can hustle back over to the spigot to turn it off. You can also try drip irrigation, which is a low-pressure system in which nozzles are placed at the base of plants and water is applied slowly. It’s a highly efficient watering system both in terms of water and energy use.
Plant a Tree
If you want to shade your property so it doesn’t get too thirsty, plant a few trees. Once they mature, they serve a threefold purpose. They provide shade, make your landscape beautiful and are a lasting reminder of your commitment to the environment.
Finding eco-friendly ways to enhance your greenspace and still conserve water isn’t as difficult as you might think. Using rain barrels, planting native plants, going easy on watering, and planting trees to shade your precious grass and plants can go a long way toward helping your flora flourish.
Note: This blog post was provided courtesy of Clara Beaufort at Gardenergigs.com.