- Xeriscaping
- 1. Water-saving garden planning
- 3. Improving soil water retention
- 5. Water plants properly
Help the development of the site, sharing the article with friends!
Water is a scarce resource and its availability has not been optimal everywhere in recent summers. We show how to save water in the garden.
Many a district has been affected by a frightening message in the past two years: drinking water treatment is no longer able to keep up with the provision of drinking water, water urgently needs to be saved, and watering of the gardens in particular should be severely restricted. In some German cities, the citizens were asked for help: They should prevent the city trees from drying out by watering them. The Federal Environment Agency estimates that as climate change progresses, competition for water as a resource will increase. Reason enough to think about saving water in the garden.
In the following, we present six valuable tips that you can use to save water in the garden. Based on the design practice "Xeriscaping", savings can be made through the right garden planning, choice of plants, improvement of the soil, the right irrigation technique and of course through the use of rainwater. A lot of water can be saved, especially on lawns.
Xeriscaping
Xeriscaping ("xerós"=Greek for "dry", "scaping" from English "landscaping"=landscape design), sometimes substitutively also called zero-scaping or xeroscaping, describes a principle of landscape and garden design, designed to save on irrigation. The reason for the development was that even in regions with little or irregular rainfall, garden design should be possible without the need for irrigation - because this is not only expensive, but also pollutes the drinking water treatment or the groundwater in dry phases. This principle consists of seven building blocks.
7 building blocks of xeriscaping:
- Planning and design
- Soil development: adaptation to the needs of plants
- Efficient Irrigation
- Appropriate Plant and Site Selection
- Mulching
- Reduced/adapted lawn areas
- Proper Care
Some of the following tipsalso form part of xeriscaping, although we have adapted and expanded them for the needs of the home garden.
1. Water-saving garden planning
The future water consumption of a garden can already be decisively influenced during the planning phase. The creation of shady areas through large-crowned trees is a plus for saving water. The shadow cast reduces the evaporation of all plants growing under the tree. Covering the soil generally saves water, since uncovered soil evaporates much more water than most plants. Planning ground cover in bed areas from the outset or determining the distribution of bark mulch ensures that later watering is less frequent. Our Plantura organic pine bark is not only effective against evaporation, but also decorative. The natural pine bark mulch is sustainably produced in the EU and protects the soil from erosion, weeds and drying out.
Since lawns need a lot of water, it makes sense to reduce it to actual needs. Lawns should be used for leisure activities such as ball sports, sunbathing or reading, but not as a design element that nobody steps on.
There is a wide range of low-maintenance plants that do very well with just a little water. All rock garden plants are very drought tolerant and using them helps to save a lot of water. However, this does not mean that only undemanding plants are allowed to enter your garden: it is more about choosing the plant according to the existing soil. If your soil is rich in humus and rather loamy, it can store a lot of water. So you can also choose thirstier plants. If your soil is sandy and poor in humus, you should choose the right plants so that you don't have to go around the house several times a day with the watering can and spread thousands of liters of water in the summer.
Group the plants in the beds strictly according to their needs: drought-loving sunbathers in one bed, shade-requiring and moisture-loving ones in another. You can also improve the soil in parts of the garden so that thirsty plants can establish themselves. In this way you avoid unnecessary watering in places where it is not needed at alldo a lot of work for themselves.
3. Improving soil water retention
Much water is wasted when rain or poured water is not retained in the ground and simply drains underground to unreachable depths. Permeable soils with many coarse pores cannot retain water well - this applies to soils with a high proportion of sand. Clay and loam soils have a high proportion of swellable clay minerals that can absorb and store water. So putting clay in it can improve the water holding ability. However, humus, which absorbs a lot of water, is even more effective at storing water. Increasing the humus content of the soil is also easier than spreading large amounts of clay in open ground. With proper humus management, you can accumulate humus in the soil. This means that more rainwater is stored in the ground, you have to water less often and there is less water loss. A particularly good tip here is to mulch all unplanted areas with bark mulch or similar material. This "surface composting" leads to humus build-up and shades the soil so that less water evaporates.
Tip - Hacking saves watering: If you can't or don't want to mulch in the vegetable patch, for example, you should hoe there regularly. This interrupts the water suction in the vertical soil pores and less water evaporates.
Rainwater is the better irrigation water due to its pH value and low lime content. So, capturing and storing it makes quality water available that you don't even have to pay for. In addition, the drinking water treatment is protected. A sufficiently large dimensioning of the collection container can help you through many a dry phase. If you have a large garden and don't want to set up a number of rain barrels, you should aim to collect rainwater in an underground reservoir. In the cooler, rainier seasons, water can be collected in this, which is then pumped up and used in summer. However, the construction of such a drainage with rainwater harvesting is already a larger project, for which you should seek advice and help from experts.
5. Water plants properly
A lot of water can also be saved when watering. For this one must ensure that as little liquid as possible directlyevaporates instead of penetrating the soil and being absorbed by plants. Many people are familiar with watering at cool times of the day, preferably in the evening. And the watering device used also makes a difference: sprinklers and rotary sprinklers, some of which atomize the water finely, allow more water to evaporate. The most effective irrigation is achieved with drip hoses, which emit water in drops just above the ground. You can also promote the rooting of your plants by watering them more frequently: if you water less frequently and for longer, this forces the roots to look deeper into the ground for water. The resulting good rooting makes the plants more drought-resistant.
Tip: There is also great potential for saving water with potted plants: Only use glazed clay pots or cover unglazed clay pots with waterproof foil to prevent evaporation via the prevent pot. Also, mixing in crushed clay pebbles or bentonite will help extend the watering interval.
6. Irrigate the lawn to save waterAs mentioned above, classic lawns need a lot of water if they are to remain lush green even during dry periods. A reduction in the lawn area brings with it extensive water savings. But even those who do not want to do without large lawns will find options: Specially composed seed mixtures should be used in dry locations. The standard seed mixture RSM 2.2.2 (common lawn for dry locations), for example, is designed to survive in dry locations. This is achieved by including grass varieties that sometimes require only a quarter of the water required by classic lawn grasses and remain green when other plants have long since given up. Read this article to learn more about seeding your lawn properly.
A lot of water can also be saved through the correct adjustment of care in summer. It is important that the area is adequately supplied with potassium, because this plays a decisive role in the water balance of the lawn. A lawn fertilizer with a sufficiently high potassium content is therefore mandatory in dry locations. That's why our Plantura organic autumn lawn fertilizer also contains a good portion of potassium to give your lawn the best possible care.
You should be careful when mowing in hot, dry summersbe. Never remove more than half of the stalk height in one mowing operation and do not mow under four centimeters in height. The best time to mow is in the evening when it's a bit cooler and wetter.
Tip: It is a common misconception that lawns dry up or "burn" in the summer and die off in the process. If lawn plants get too dry and too hot, they go into what is known as summer dormancy. So they take a break in growth - just like in winter - because the conditions are too adverse. As soon as it gets cooler and wetter, the grasses sprout again at the base. So if you can do without lush greenery in the hot midsummer, letting the lawn turn yellow for a few weeks is definitely an option.
If you want to make your garden not only water-saving, but also environmentally friendly, you will find our article on sustainable gardening here.