XERISCAPE: Beyond Cactus and Rocks

I say that because a well thought out and healthy landscape always looks good, and one of the basic precepts of a water wise approach is to plan well. This means following the traditional steps to a good ground plan or outline or set of "bones". Creating a sensible and aesthetically pleasing arrangement of hard scape and plantings.

Determine what needs to be where, in the sense of what will be hard surface, what will be open space, what needs to be screened, what needs to be a focal point or specimen planting area, and so on. Once you have made those decisions in tandem with evaluating and considering the microclimate and other conditions on site, then you finally begin to consider which specific plants to use.

Your plant choices will be dictated by both their intended function and the specific location on the site. Common sense tells you it is foolish to plant something that requires a wet location in a naturally dry spot such as at the top of a hill where nearly immediate runoff is inevitable. Common sense tells you not to plant something that hates "wet feet" at the bottom of the hill in a depression where all that runoff accumulates.

Common sense also tells you that using such factors of microclimate and soil conditions can be made to work in your favor. For example, runoff can be channeled from a patio to a flower bed full of thirsty annuals. Conversely, careful plant selection will place drought tolerant plants in the drier locations. And common sense also tells you to group plantings according to their cultural needs -- which includes water. This enables you to water selectively rather than watering everything when only the "thirsty" plants really need it.

Beyond practical terms, we are talking about landscaping, a body of work where aesthetic considerations are important. Again, careful planning ensures that the results are a pleasure to experience and view. Careful planning also provides a unique and personalized landscape, not just a cookie cutter job using the top ten water wise plants from the "rocks and cactus" list.

A well done xeriscape should not be discernible from any other well designed landscape. Don't settle for less.

ENJOY!

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