* Re: [Arid_gardener] Question from Home-Hort WWW page

[Tyler Storey]

Hi Monica,

I think you'll find that any ground cover, or even a variety of low-growing
desert adapted plants, will use considerably less water than a lawn, once
you have it established - and it will without doubt be lower maintenance
than grass.

There aren't a lot of groundcovers that do really well around here when
planted alone.  You're fortunate in having some part sun and filtered sun -
that's the perfect setting for some of our very best landscape plants, from
small and medium agaves to barrel cacti, penstemon, aloes, blackfoot
daisies, Autumn sage - and on and on.  There's a great free booklet called
"Landscape Plants for the Arizona Desert" published by the Arizona Municipal
Water User's Association and available through the Extension or through the
Phoenix Water Conservation Office (602-261-8367), with portions available
on-line here: http://amwua.org/conservation/landscape_plants.htm  In it,
you'll find great information on plants to use when replacing your lawn,
groundcover, accent plants, perennial flowers, and more..  

Also, do keep in mind that if you're taking out a lawn you will be losing
one of the few advantages to having turf: the cooling effect you get from
grass. But you can get around that.  To minimize or eliminate an increase in
heat in your yard, use an organic mulch such as small bark chips or small
chipped wood instead of gravel.  If you have a fairly flat area, wood or
bark chips will work wonderfully.  You'll find that gravel gets very hot,
and radiates heat into your home and landscape will into the night.  If you
keep the heat in your yard down by using organic mulch, you'll also save
even more on water usage, and plants thrive in the organic mulch much better
than in gravel.  

Eliminating all or a portion of your lawn is one of the best ways to save on
landscape water, and there are great plants out there to help you make a
wonderful, green, and low-maintenance landscape without hot and ugly gravel.

Tyler

 

 <mailto:tyler at tylerstorey.com> tyler at tylerstorey.com

 <http://tylerstorey.com> http://tylerstorey.com

602-738-2978

  _____  

From: arid_gardener-bounces at CALS.arizona.edu
[mailto:arid_gardener-bounces at CALS.arizona.edu] On Behalf Of Monica J. Stern
Sent: Sunday, July 15, 2007 1:27 PM
To: 'Dick'; arid_gardener at Ag.arizona.edu
Subject: RE: * Re: [Arid_gardener] Question from Home-Hort WWW page

 

Will a ground cover use less water than a lawn?  I guess that is my real
question.

Thanks

 

Monica 

From: Dick [mailto:rkgross3 at cox.net] 
Sent: Sunday, July 15, 2007 10:27 AM
To: arid_gardener at Ag.arizona.edu; mstern at mjsterncpa.com
Subject: * Re: [Arid_gardener] Question from Home-Hort WWW page

 

That is tough. Most or all living ground covers require full sun to be
anything but puny. Four inches of granite, without a plastic underlay, works
well for me.

 

Dick Gross

  

----- Original Message ----- 

From: < <mailto:mstern at mjsterncpa.com> mstern at mjsterncpa.com>

To: < <mailto:arid_gardener at Ag.arizona.edu> arid_gardener at Ag.arizona.edu>

Sent: Saturday, July 14, 2007 8:08 AM

Subject: [Arid_gardener] Question from Home-Hort WWW page

 

> Monica
> 85032
>  <mailto:mstern at mjsterncpa.com> mstern at mjsterncpa.com
> 
> We wish to remove most of a bermuda lawn and were thinking about having
some kind of ground cover in a fairly large area under trees.  It would get
partially full sun and partially filtered sun.  Lawn faces due south.
> 
> Does this make sense from a water usage?  What type of ground cover would
stay green most of the year and be lower maintenance than grass?
> 
> Thanks
> 
> 
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http://CALS.arizona.edu/mailman2/listinfo/arid_gardener
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