Water conservation is becoming an important part of many homeowner association landscape goals. One of the best means of conserving water is to design or modify the landscape to reduce its water requirements.
New landscaping techniques have evolved to reduce water and maintenance requirements while providing aesthetically pleasing landscapes. Landscaping concepts that reduce water requirements are called "xeriscape," a word that combines the Greek xeros (dry) with landscape. Xeriscaping was originally conceived in the southwestern U.S. and inspired by the Mediterranean area gardening traditions.
Native species are often preferred for natural landscapes but plant selection should take into consideration the microclimate and topography of the site. In some cases, native plants will not be the most appropriate choice. Man-made installations can create desert climates (like parking lots), swamps (like detention ponds, waterways) and artificially-shaded areas. So, effective xeriscaping should match plants with the microclimates of the developed landscape site.
For example, plants adapted to wet soils should be used in low spots, waterways, detention ponds, spillways, and areas with poor drainage; drought tolerant plants should be used in dry spots, windy areas, exposed areas, plantings on berms, and plantings in areas against unshaded south or west walls of buildings.
Since natural landscaping is a fairly recent phenomena in this country, it can meet resistance from those with traditional ideas of what a landscape should look like. One way to satisfy these notions is to use the "oasis" approach. Oasis designing involves placing high water requiring, high maintenance, and showy plantings in the areas with the most visual impact like the main entry. In less visible areas, xeriscaping can be used. This hybrid approach generally satisfies both traditionalists and environmentalists.
Landscape design for water conservation includes grouping plants in the landscape according to their water requirements. By grouping plants with similar water needs, the irrigation system can be zoned so that each group receives only the amount of water required to maintain the plants. This technique has the additional advantage that plants on the same irrigation set will not be under or over watered at the expense of other plants.
An additional way to reduce maintenance and water use is to increase the use of mulches. A 3-4" layer of mulch should be used in planting beds to reduce evaporation from the soil surface, moderate soil temperatures, and suppress weeds. Mulches can sometimes replace turf or groundcovers in areas where they require extensive watering or do not cover an area completely. In these situations, mulches provide the additional benefits of requiring less maintenance and not consuming water.
Two more aspects of design that reduce irrigation needs are the use of drought tolerant plants and windbreaks. Drought tolerant plants inherently require less water because they are adapted to arid areas or to regions with frequent drought or with soils of low water holding capacity. If using turf in the landscape, consider using one of the more drought tolerant species.
Windbreaks reduce wind velocity and can greatly reduce water loss that occurs by evaporation during irrigation and by evapo-transpiration from plants. Windbreaks can be formed by walls, fences, shrub beds, or hedges. Properly constructed, windbreaks can reduce wind velocity by up to 85 percent and should be used in areas with steady or gusty winds.
Xeriscaping is a homeowner association's friend. It saves water and reduces maintenance while providing year round beauty. If your HOA is due for a landscape makeover, explore the options with a local landscape design architect. There are a variety of options and approaches that will suite every taste and pocketbook.
Excerpts from an article by Gary Knox. For more on good HOA landscape practices, see Regenesis.net .
