Homes Plus
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/206169
NOVEMBER 2013 HOMES PLUS 10 Planting thoughts for next year: Xeric gardening is the way to go Fall and winter are great times to think about new gardens or redesigns for your landscape. Why not think about a xeric design? A xeric garden is designed with drought-tolerant plants, paired with an efficient watering program, to both conserve water and create an attractive landscape. Why create a xeric garden? Less watering means less time spent in the garden, and less money spent on water. But it goes much deeper than this. It comes down to being good stewards to the earth and its resources. All one has to do is pick up the newspaper, or turn on the TV to see how , our water resources are changing. The water level in Lake Michigan has dropped. The severe drought and watering restrictions that occurred last year, and communities bickering over water rights have become all too common these days. This doesn't mean we all need to start planting cacti, but it does mean we need to search out plants that use less water or use it more efficiently . Let's start by looking at the mainstay of our landscapes – the trees. Many trees do have drought-resistant features, and are more tolerant of dry conditions once 235103010 MICHAEL TIMM established. You did notice I said that once established; newly planted trees need to be watered the first couple of years. Also, as a general rule of thumb, trees with smaller leaves use water more efficiently then larger-leaved varieties. Deciduous trees that have drought-resistant qualities include red and freeman maple, hickories, hackberry, eastern redbud, ginkgo, honeylocust, northern red and bur oak, lindens and elms. Evergreen trees that are drought-tolerant include eastern white, red, and Scotch pine, white and blue spruce and junipers. What about shrubs? There are actually a lot of good shrubs out there that are drought-tolerant. A partial list would include barberries, cotoneasters, spireas, service berries, smoke trees, summersweet, forsythia, privet, mugo pines, ninebark, gro-low sumac, alpine currant, lilacs, tamarix, witch hazel and viburnums. Now let's add some color with perennials. Plants like yarrow, asters, butterfly weed, tickseed, coneflower, blanket flower, daylilies, lavender, gayfeather, catmint, creeping phlox, black-eyed Susan, sages, sedum and sun-loving ornamental grasses are just a few good options. If you want to add even more color, annuals like cosmos, moss roses, petunias, marigolds, sun daisies, verbena, vinca and zinnias are great choices. We also need to look at our watering practices, as well. How and when we water is important. First, if you're using a sprinkler, stop. It's a very inefficient way of watering. Soaker hoses are the way to go. You can water only the areas you want and a lot less evaporates. When we water is also important. The best time is early in the morning. This allows the water to soak in properly, reaching the root zone of the plants, while still allowing the evaporation of excess water Photo by Dwayne Butler/Homes Plus which can cause disease problems. As you can see, it's still possible to have beautiful gardens and conserve water at the same time. Create a xeric garden in your landscape next year and save time, money and water without sacrificing beauty Happy gardening! . (Michael Timm is the head horticulturist with Ebert's Greenhouse Village in Ixonia. He can be reached at mtimm@ebertsgreenhouse.com.)