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The San Diego County Water Authority's Sustainable Landscaping offers examples of plant choices for our region. Photo: SDCWA

Free WaterSmart Landscaping Class Series Returns in March

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Participants receive expert advice and develop a personalized landscape plan

Looking for a way to spruce up your yard and trim water use at the same time? The San Diego County Water Authority is here to help with two new sessions of the four-part WaterSmart Landscape Makeover Series starting in March.

These free, award-winning and interactive classes teach the steps for successfully converting high-water-use turf areas to WaterSmart landscapes during four classes over consecutive weeks. Participants learn from local landscape professionals about soil, project planning and design, turf removal, plant selection, irrigation, efficiency and rainwater harvesting. Each series culminates with experts helping homeowners create personalized landscape makeover plans.

The first class begins March 5 at the Water Authority’s headquarters in Kearny Mesa. Another four-part series, also at the Kearny Mesa facility, begins March 28. Each class is scheduled from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Preregistration and a commitment to attend all four classes in the series is required. Applicants must also identify existing turf areas to remove at their homes and have in-ground, working irrigation systems to qualify.

Class details and an online application form are at landscapemakeover.watersmartsd.org/classes. Enrollment is on a first-come, first-served basis; applicants may join a waitlist if their desired session is full.

“Participants rave about how these classes not only instruct, but inspire them to do more with their yards by enhancing their landscapes while increasing water-use efficiency,” said Mark Muir, chair of the Water Authority’s Board of Directors. “Since the landscape makeover series began in April 2014, participants have cut their average household water use by about a third because of their WaterSmart landscape upgrades.”

The class series is recommended – but not required – for residents interested in following guidelines set by the Sustainable Landscapes Program. The grant-funded partnership, known as the SLP, was created by the Water Authority, the City of San Diego, the County of San Diego, the Surfrider Foundation, the California American Water Company and the Association of Compost Producers. The SLP promotes landscape upgrades that comply with a more rigorous set of design criteria than other turf replacement programs. It includes climate-appropriate plants and high-efficiency irrigation equipment, rainwater capture and detention features, and soil amendments to improve water efficiency. The Water Authority recently installed the Sustainable Landscaping Demonstration Garden at its Kearny Mesa headquarters at 4677 Overland Ave. in San Diego. Visitors to the demonstration garden can view a practical, beautiful landscape that applies SLP principles that can be replicated at their homes.

A limited number of SLP incentives remain to help qualified applicants receive up to $1.75 per square foot toward eligible project costs for upgrading 500 to 3,000 square feet of existing turf areas to sustainable landscapes. For more information about the SLP, including program resources and incentives, go to sustainablelandscapessd.org.

In addition to the four-class series, the Landscape Makeover Program offers free, three-hour WaterSmart Landscape Design Workshops – a popular first step toward implementing water-efficient landscapes. The workshops provide an introduction to skills and resources needed for a landscape makeover. The Water Authority, in partnership with its member agencies, will hold workshops in February, March and April at locations around the county. Workshop locations, times and registration details are at landscapemakeover.watersmartsd.org/design_workshop.

Residents who want to learn more about the makeover process from the comfort of their homes can view the Landscape Makeover Videos on Demand at landscapemakeover.watersmartsd.org/elearning. Those videos provide content that is similar to the workshops and class series in an online format for easy access.

 

WaterSmart Landscape Makeover Series

Upcoming Four-Class Series

March 5, 12, 19 and 26
March 28, April 4, 11 and 18

Classes are held from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Water Authority’s Kearny Mesa headquarters,
4677 Overland Ave.

For details and to apply:
landscapemakeover.watersmartsd.org/classes.

Flowers, WaterSmart checkup program

Wanted: Large Landscapes for Program Proven to Reduce Irrigation Water Use

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Participants receive training, state-of-the-art tools to cut outdoor demand by at least 20 percent.

The San Diego County Water Authority is seeking approximately 20 commercial-scale landscapes for participation in a program that has demonstrated significant outdoor water-use reductions through a combination of training, hardware upgrades and technical assistance valued at more than $15,000 per site.

Applicants have until March 31 to file statements of interest in the WaterSmart Landscape Efficiency Program, using the form at watersmartsd.org.  An interest meeting is scheduled from 2-4 p.m. on Feb. 15 at San Diego Gas & Electric’s Energy Innovation Center, 4760 Clairemont Mesa Blvd.

In two earlier iterations of the landscape efficiency program, water savings topped 30 percent, exceeding the target of 20 percent. Participating sites have included parks, apartments, schools and homeowner association common areas. Project sites are typically about four irrigated acres (though they are often part of a larger property), and they must be on dedicated potable water meters.

“We are looking for places to showcase significant water savings without compromising landscape quality by employing best practices for irrigation management and top-tier technology,” said Carlos Michelon, principal water resources specialist at the Water Authority. “This program is one of many ways the Water Authority continues to promote long-term water-use efficiency.”

The WaterSmart Landscape Efficiency Program requires joint participation by property owners and landscape maintenance contractors at each site. Landscape contractors receive training, assistance, and performance-based financial incentives for documented water savings. Site owners receive water-saving devices and the long-term benefits of lower water use. The program is funded mainly through a Proposition 84 Integrated Regional Water Management grant from the California Department of Water Resources.

Program benefits include leak detection and repair, irrigation system pressure regulation, improvements in distribution uniformity of irrigation water, and the installation of flow sensors and weather-based irrigation controllers. Each site is provided with a water management target that will be tracked for a year. Participants are responsible for hardware installation, landscape maintenance and other contract conditions.

From the pool of interested parties, the Water Authority will select those that best fit the program’s technical requirements and are most likely to meet the program’s demanding implementation schedule. Promising sites that aren’t selected for the program’s current round may be eligible for future rounds, depending on funding.

In addition to the WaterSmart Landscape Efficiency Program, the Water Authority offers free training to landscape professionals through the Qualified Water Efficient Landscaper program. That program, known as QWEL, provides 20 hours of training on the latest water-efficiency principles and the opportunity to earn a QWEL certificate. Information about QWEL is at qwel.watersmartsd.org.