Posts

Inspired by the San Diego County Water Authority's free landscape workshops, Vallecitos Water District employee Eileen Koonce transformed her own landscaping. Photo: Vallecitos Water District example watersmart landscaping

Free Landscape Workshops Convenient for Vallecitos Customers

/in , /by

In partnership with the San Diego County Water Authority and the City of San Marcos, the Vallecitos Water District offers a series of five WaterSmart landscape design workshops in August and September to help its customers redesign and install new water-saving, sustainable landscapes at a convenient North County location.

Classes take place every other Wednesday evening from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. starting August 2 at the Vallecitos Water District, 201 Vallecitos De Oro in San Marcos. The series is now open for registration at www.sdcwa.org/your-water/conservation/classes/. Scroll down to find the in-person course schedule or use the QR Code below. Prior registration is required.

Use the QR Code to access landscape design workshop information and to register. free landscape workshops

Use the QR Code to access landscape design workshop information and to register.

Plan ahead during summer months for fall installation

Summer is an ideal time to begin the workshop series. Participants who complete all five workshops receive a free visit to their home by a professional landscape architect to help them put a plan in place for installation during the cooler fall and winter months.

The Delaplanes received first place due to the addition of a working bioswale. Photo: Vallecitos Water District free landscape workshops

The Delaplanes received first place in the 2022 Vallecitos Water District landscape makeover contest due to the addition of a working bioswale. Photo: Vallecitos Water District

Residents in San Diego County have used the know-how from the free workshops to convert more than 1.5 million square feet of grass into beautiful, sustainable landscapes. They use less water and provide a lifestyle-friendly yard ideal for San Diego’s climate. New landscapes installed through the program have been proven to reduce water use by up to 37%.

Webinar topics cover residential landscape design for the homeowner, plant palettes, healthy soil, irrigation retrofits, and streamlined landscape maintenance. More than 8,000 San Diego County residents have taken these courses to date.

Low-water use plants, improved irrigation technologies, and WaterSmart classes reduce energy use, protect natural resources, and create beautiful outdoor living spaces as well as save water.

Save water, and save money with rebates

SLIDER

The Chens transformed their love for succulents into an award-winning landscape makeover. Photo: Vallecitos Water District

Landscape watering accounts for more than half of a typical household’s water use in California. WaterSmart workshops help residents create a drought-tolerant, water-efficient landscape with a design that maximizes enjoyment of the outdoor space. In addition, homeowners can save the time and expense required for ongoing maintenance of turf.

San Diego County homeowners may be eligible for between $2 and $4 per square foot to remove grass and replace it with low water-use plants better suited to our region’s hotter, drier weather. All customers are eligible for the base rebate of $2 per square foot. Residents in unincorporated San Diego County may be eligible for additional incentives through the Waterscape Rebate Program.

(Editor’s note: The Vallecitos Water District is one of the San Diego County Water Authority’s 24 member agencies that deliver water across the San Diego County region.) 

The sustainable landscape demonstration garden at the Olivenhain Municipal Water District’s (OMWD) headquarters provides customers with examples of water-efficient landscaping techniques that can save water and money.

Demonstration Garden is Inspiration for Olivenhain MWD Customers

/in , /by

Using water efficiently is a way of life and an important responsibility in the San Diego region. Water users have learned how to make the most of every drop and avoid wasteful or careless habits. Homeowners are replacing impractical thirsty lawns with beautiful low-water-use landscaping.

Over the past decade, residents have adopted habits that not only save money, but also create vibrant yards, reduce energy use, protect natural resources, and reduce landscape maintenance.

Customers can visit the California-friendly demonstration garden and hydroponic gardening tower at OMWD’s headquarters free any day of the year. Photo: Olivenhain Municipal Water District

Customers can visit the California-friendly demonstration garden and hydroponic gardening tower at OMWD’s headquarters free any day of the year. Photo: Olivenhain Municipal Water District

The sustainable landscape demonstration garden at Olivenhain Municipal Water District’s headquarters provides customers with examples of water-efficient landscaping techniques that can save water and money. Techniques include rain harvesting, and the garden features a rain barrel, a larger cistern, and a dry stream bed to capture water for later use.

Sustainable landscape demonstration gardens can help inspire homeowners to create and maintain their own beautiful, low-water-use landscapes at home. Since half of the water used in California’s urban areas goes toward landscape irrigation, any reduction contributes to successful conservation efforts.

New hydroponic gardening system 

A hydroponic growing system called a Tower Garden is the newest addition to the Olivenhain Municipal Water District's demonstration garden. Photo: Olivenhain Municipal Water District

A hydroponic growing system called a Tower Garden is the newest addition to the Olivenhain Municipal Water District’s demonstration garden. Photo: Olivenhain Municipal Water District

OMWD has added a hydroponic gardening unit to its demonstration garden. It was provided through a donation by Tower Garden. The Tower Garden unit displays a water-efficient form of growing produce in a compact and vertical system. It is of particular interest to people who are looking for more water-wise methods of growing produce than traditional growing practices.

“OMWD encourages ratepayers to continue to make conservation a way of life and explore the many innovative and water-use efficient products that are available on the market,” said OMWD Board Treasurer Neal Meyers. “A great place to start is outdoors. We hope customers take advantage of free resources and rebates to design a water-efficient landscape, and consider other water-saving options like graywater and hydroponic systems.”

Save water, money and go hydroponic

Hydroponic systems grow plants in a water-based nutrient solution rather than soil. Hydroponic systems use less water than traditional soil-based growing systems. In commercial agricultural settings and farms, hydroponic systems can produce faster growth and higher yields of crops. The systems can also be used in home gardens.  Some units can use up to 90% less water than traditional produce gardens.

The demo garden hydroponic unit is operational and will be maintained by BCK Programs. Local scout troops in the district will help maintain the unit under supervision. The scouts earn conservation patches for their volunteer work. Crops harvested will be donated to scout volunteers, or donated to a local community food bank. A second system donated by Tower Garden will be used by BCK Programs to provide hydroponic gardening lessons in local schools.

Customers can visit the California-friendly demonstration garden and hydroponic gardening tower at OMWD’s headquarters free any day of the year. It is also viewable online. The garden highlights four key principles of sustainable landscaping. Visitors can learn about healthy soils, rainwater as a resource, climate-appropriate plants, and low-water-use irrigation.

Demonstration gardens inspire water savings

Demonstration gardens can provide inspiration to homeowners to achieve water savings through landscape makeover projects. Photo: Olivenhain Municipal Water District

Demonstration gardens can provide inspiration to homeowners to achieve water savings through landscape makeover projects. Photo: Olivenhain Municipal Water District

In a 2007 survey published in The Journal of the American Association of Botanical Gardens and Arboreta, half of those surveyed during a visit to the Water Conservation Garden at Cuyamaca College, found that making a change to their landscape was due to their visit to the water conservation demonstration garden. The results illustrate the value of demonstration gardens to the community.

The demonstration garden at Olivenhain’s headquarters received financial support from the Hans & Margaret Doe Charitable Trust at San Diego Foundation, Hunter Industries, Grangetto’s Farm & Garden Supply, and Bushman USA.

(Editor’s note: The Olivenhain Municipal Water District is one of the San Diego County Water Authority’s 24 member agencies that deliver water across the San Diego County region.) 

Native plant-sustainability-garden-landscapetracting pollinators like hummingbirds and butterflies. Image: Water Authority plant installation

Plant Installation Brings Your New WaterSmart Landscape to Life

/in , /by

With your new WaterSmart landscaping plans complete, demolition and turf removal done, and your new irrigation system in place, it’s time to get started on the plant installation. For most homeowners, this is the most rewarding part of the process seeing your new landscaping come to life.

Review the following tips to help you through the plant installation and placement process

Step 1: Use a garden hose to outline groundcover areas to help you visualize the design before you start the installation.

Step 2: Set the plants while still in their containers, in their approximate location per your planting design plan. Take a step back and review. View your plant placements from various angles. Make any adjustments to the design now to avoid having to dig up and relocate any plants.

Be aware many drought-tolerant landscapes look sparse for the first few years. As your plants reach their mature size, they will fill in over time. Be sure to allow proper spacing to allow each plant to grow to its full size.

Step 3: Dig plant holes twice the width of the plant root ball and just deep enough to bury the roots. Water the hole before placing the plant. When planted, the top of the root ball should be even with or slightly above soil level.

Colorful, water-wise plants replaced a thirsty, labor intensive front lawn in Deborah Brant's winning 2019 landscape makeover. Photo: Vista Irrigation District

Colorful, water-wise plants replaced a thirsty, labor intensive front lawn in Deborah Brant’s winning 2019 landscape makeover. Photo: Vista Irrigation District

Step 4: Once in the hole, the plant should be packed firmly into place with the original, compost-amended soil from the hole. Extra dirt can create a berm around the plant to hold water.

Step 5: Cover the planting area with a two- to three-inch-deep layer of mulch. Keep mulch a few inches away around the plant stems to prevent rot. Using mulch has many benefits. It can help suppress weeds, enrich the soils, protect plant roots from compaction, provide a finished look to your garden, and mulch conserves water.

Step 6: Monitor your garden to ensure your plants are getting adequate water. Even native plant species and drought-tolerant plants need water to get established. This can take a year. To minimize your watering needs while your plants are getting established, install your landscape in the fall months before the months of most significant rainfall in San Diego, generally December through March.

______________________________________________________

WaterSmart Living-Logo-San Diego County Water Authority

(Editor’s Note: The San Diego County Water Authority and its 24 member agencies offer programs, resources, and incentives to improve water-use efficiency for residential, commercial, and agricultural users. WaterSmart choices are a way of life in the region. Stay WaterSmart San Diego! For more water-use efficiency resources, go to WaterSmart.SD.org.)

Making a plan of your existing landscape and evaluating site elements is key to helping you make design decisions as you start the design process. Photo: San Diego County Water Authority Six Steps to WaterSmart

Six Steps to WaterSmart Landscape Success

/in , /by

Every WaterSmart landscape added by a homeowner becomes a key part of the San Diego region’s water efficiency goals. By converting a turf-focused yard to a WaterSmart landscape, you have the potential to beautify your property, save money, and reduce maintenance. You also play a critical role in protecting and improving the health of our natural environment by cultivating native plants, retaining and minimizing stormwater runoff, and conserving water.

Why is turf the target? Our video explains the multiple reasons why

As outlined in the video, there are six distinct steps to successfully create a WaterSmart landscape.

Step 1. Identify your landscape target. What types of plants do you want to use? Which irrigation types suit those plants? These answers will help guide you through the design process.

Step 2. Create a basic plot plan. Making a plan of your existing landscape will help you visualize and reimagine your future landscape.

Step 3. Evaluate your site. Evaluate site elements such as soil, drainage, sun exposure, and views to identify opportunities and constraints. This knowledge is key to helping you make design decisions as you start the design process. It’s essential at this stage to pay special attention to methods of retaining stormwater.

Even if you don’t plan to install the whole project at one time, you should create a complete master plan for your landscape so the outcome is unified, including a WaterSmart planting and irrigation design. Graphic: San Diego County Water Authority Six Steps to WaterSmart

Even if you don’t plan to install the whole project at once, you should create a complete master plan for your landscape, so the outcome is unified, including a WaterSmart planting and irrigation design. Graphic: San Diego County Water Authority

Step 4. Design your WaterSmart landscape.  Even if you don’t plan to install the whole project at one time, you should create a complete master plan for your landscape, so the outcome is unified, including a WaterSmart planting and irrigation design. Verify your planned water use before starting construction and adjust if it doesn’t meet your original landscape target.

Step 5. Implement your plan. As you execute your plan step by step, take your time. Hire a professional if needed. Getting it done right is far preferable to rushing or tackling tasks too difficult or complex for you to complete properly.

Step 6. Care for your WaterSmart landscape. Learn the best practices for maintaining your landscape. Consider creating a maintenance schedule to help you keep on track. You can even use these maintenance techniques to help you save money in existing landscape areas that have not been upgraded.

______________________________________________________________________

WaterSmart Living-Logo-San Diego County Water Authority

(Editor’s Note: The San Diego County Water Authority and its 24 member agencies offer programs, resources, and incentives to improve water-use efficiency for residential, commercial, and agricultural users. WaterSmart Living is a way of life in the region. Stay WaterSmart San Diego! For more water-use efficiency resources, go to WaterSmart.SD.org.)

Healthy trees provide tremendous environmental and community benefits, and require a minimal investment in water to stay healthy. Photo: Valiphotos / Pexels tree care tips

Tree Care Tips Preserve Benefits During Drought  

/in , /by

Trees are among the most valuable investment in San Diego County’s landscape – including your own waterwise landscaping. Trees stand out as key performers in your landscape design for multiple reasons. No other landscape plant offers greater benefits to your landscape and the greater environment.

Investing in tree maintenance is vital to keep them healthy. As you reassess your landscaping’s irrigation needs during extended periods of drought, allocate sufficient water to your trees, which will in turn provide multiple benefits.

Trees need time to grow and reach maturity. Saving water in the short term during a drought could result in damaged or dead trees, which could take decades to restore. According to the San Diego Regional Urban Forest Council, the cost of watering a mature tree is less than $20 each year. It can cost $1,000 to remove a dead tree. Taking care of your trees during drought ensures a tremendous return on this investment.

Multiple long-term benefits from trees

Healthy trees fight climate change and cool our cities, provide habitat, and improve the health of our neighborhoods. Photo: Kampus Production / Pexels

In the region’s dry and increasingly warming Mediterranean climate, trees help fight climate change. Trees counteract the urban heat island effect, especially in areas dominated by hardscapes such as streets, sidewalks, and building roofs. The evapotranspiration from tree leaves cools the ambient temperature down, much as perspiration lowers a person’s body temperature. Watering your trees also reduces the water needs of plants growing in their shade.

Trees provide habitat for insects, pollinators, birds, and animals – and human beings with their welcoming shade and protection. Placed properly, shade trees can reduce the use of air conditioning from 20% to 50%. The evaporation from a single tree can produce the cooling effect of ten room-size residential air conditioners operating 20 hours a day. California street trees alone save the amount of electricity it would take to air condition 530,000 households every year.

Trees protect your property, and studies show the presence of trees improves property values. Neighborhoods with more trees have lower crime rates. In business districts, trees attract customers. People linger and shop longer when trees are present. Sales rise and benefit the entire economy.

Prevent wildfire risks with healthy trees

Even the strictest drought restrictions allow for watering trees on residential and commercial properties. Photo: Helix Water District tree care tips

Even the strictest drought restrictions allow for watering trees on residential and commercial properties. Photo: Helix Water District

When trees die off due to drought, they become wildfire safety risks in addition to losing their many environmental and economic benefits. While any plant might die off without sufficient water, it may grow back within weeks. Drought stress can make living trees more susceptible to diseases and pests.

Even the strictest drought restrictions allow for watering trees on residential and commercial properties. The preferred method is to use a slow-release method such as a perforated bucket or low-volume non-spray irrigation.

Effective ways to water trees

When watering your trees, water along the dripline below the canopy edge, not at the trunk. Diagram: San Diego Regional Urban Forestry Council tree care tips

When watering your trees, water along the dripline below the canopy edge, not at the trunk. Graphic: San Diego Regional Urban Forestry Council

Trees need deep infrequent watering. Once established, once a month in the summer and during months without measurable rainfall is sufficient.

  • Newly planted trees: For the first three years, water once weekly with up to five gallons of water.
  • Small, established low water trees need only about 20 gallons a month. This is the same amount of water in a single average shower.
  • Larger, mature low water trees need up to 200 gallons per month.
  • Monitor the soil moisture under your tree and adjust amounts accordingly. You may want to use a soil probe to check at the roots.
  • Apply water at the edge of the tree’s canopy, not at the trunk. This is where the roots absorb and bring water into the tree.

Trees create community. They provide inviting and cool areas for recreation and relaxation in our neighborhoods and contribute to playgrounds and parks. San Diego enjoys a perfect example right in the heart of the city. One of our greatest civic attractions is Balboa Park, full of beautiful trees planted by visionaries like Kate Sessions a century ago.

Find additional advice from the San Diego Regional Urban Forests Council on tree care and drought.

Padre Dam Municipal Water District-Landscape Makeover Winner-WaterSmartSD-drought

Hard Work Pays Off for Padre Dam Landscape Makeover Winner

/in , /by

Frank Edward’s Santee home is bursting with bright colors and textures. Vibrant yellow, orange, red, green, and purple flowers, and drought-tolerant, native plants spring to life where there was once just dry and patchy grass.

“It was a lot of hard work but it was also a lot of fun,” said Edward. “It was great to see all of my labor come to fruition.”

The transformation from high maintenance lawn to vibrant design is the winner of the 2021 Padre Dam Municipal Water District Landscape Makeover Contest.

Before transformation

Frank Edward'a home before his award-winning landscape. Photo: Padre Dam Landscape Makeover

Frank Edward’s home before his award-winning landscape redesign. Photo: Padre Dam Municipal Water District

After transformation

The results of Frank Edward's hard work. Photo: Padre Dam MWD

The results of Frank Edward’s hard work. Photo: Padre Dam Municipal Water District

Edward began his water-efficient landscape journey in 2018 when he attended a three-hour WaterSmart Landscape Workshop at Padre Dam’s customer service Center. He was tired of his high maintenance, drought-bleached lawn and wanted his landscape to add to the overall attractiveness of his home.

During the workshop, he learned about the WaterSmart Landscape Makeover Series, a four-class series that helped him through the process of preparing his space, designing his landscape, selecting plants, and irrigation planning. Edward used a kidney bean shaped planter as a starting point and designed his landscape around this feature.

“Hard work but a lot of fun” to complete landscape makeover

Frank Edwards had a complete plan after attending the Water Authority's WaterSmart Landscape Makeover Series. Photo: Frank Edwards Padre Dam Landscape Makeover

Frank Edwards had a complete plan after attending the San Diego County Water Authority’s WaterSmart Landscape Makeover Series. Photo: Frank Edwards

Edward had a fully designed layout ready to be implemented by the end of the class series. He set to work removing his old turf and installing his new landscape in the spring of 2019 and did all of the removal, designing, and planting himself. He even constructed a small barn that acts as a shed and a footbridge over his riverbed to add unique and functional design elements. The work took about a year to complete. Water storage features including a small pond and rock river bed, which add depth and shape to the contoured yard.

The new yard has places to sit and enjoy the flowers, pollinators, and bird. Photo: Padre Dam MWD

The new yard has places to sit and enjoy the flowers, pollinators, and birds. Photo: Padre Dam Municipal Water District

Edward installed piping to collect water off his roof, collected in a rain barrel, and diverts it to the landscape’s rock river bed. Additionally, he created a pond that can hold several hundred gallons of water. This collected rainwater helps to irrigate the plants by replenishing the soil’s moisture for a period after it rains. Edward also installed a smart controller that waters the plants based on hydrozones and local weather through a drip irrigation system.

Neighbors compliment Frank Edward on his efforts. Photo: Padre Dam Municipal Water District

Edward now spends time relaxing and listening to birds in his front yard. He enjoys the peaceful atmosphere and the satisfaction he gets when neighbors and passersby compliment his landscape. He recommends that others looking to plant a water-smart landscape put in the time to research and plan in order to create an environment and design that will work for their lifestyle.

“Hard work and a well-thought-out plan certainly paid positive results,” said Edward. “It was a great success.”

(Editor’s note: The Padre Dam Municipal Water District is one of the San Diego County Water Authority’s 24 member agencies that deliver water across the metropolitan San Diego region.)

Hydrozones-Conservation Corner-landscaping

Know the Hydrozone Game Rules

/in , /by

Hydrozones are the different areas of your landscaping where plants with similar irrigation needs are grouped together.  This allows you to apply water as efficiently as possible through rainwater catchment, supplemented by irrigation, while avoiding unnecessary and wasteful overwatering.

Sun exposure, slopes, and plant root depths need to be taken into consideration along with plant water needs. All these characteristics create specific hydrozones. Even when the soil is the same, a full sun area is one hydrozone, full shade areas are another, and mixed exposure areas create yet a third. Shade from buildings or trees can also raise or lower temperatures.

Each irrigation valve should water its own separate hydrozone populated by plants with similar water needs, living conditions, and root depths. Plants with high water needs such as vegetables or lawns need to be grouped into their own hydrozone. Sprinklers or emitters on this zone shouldn’t overwater anything else.

Don’t overdo it with your irrigation

Inspect your sprinkler heads regularly to make sure they are not obstructed or watering onto pavement or other hardscapes. Photo: Irrigation Association

Inspect your sprinkler heads regularly to make sure they are not obstructed or watering onto the pavement or other hardscapes. Photo: Irrigation Association

Each hydrozone must be able to handle enough water volume for every emitter to work properly. Hydrozones should have individual sprinklers or emitters delivering only the required amount of water, spaced out so every plant in the hydrozone receives an equal and accurate amount. If two sprinklers cross over one another, plants receiving water from both will receive more water than needed. In this example, sprinklers should be turned away from each other, or be reset farther apart. Professional landscapers call this “matched precipitation.” 

This article is part of a year-long series inspired by the 71-page Sustainable Landscapes Program guidebook available at SustainableLandscapesSD.org. The Water Authority and its partners also offer other great resources for landscaping upgrades, including free WaterSmart classes at WaterSmartSD.org.