Practices for water restrictions or extreme drought to help your lawn!
Smart Scape Site Demonstration at Ramar Communications
SmartScape PowerPoint
Sales Tax Exempt Water
We have speakers available to present information on water conservation for your clubs and organizations. If you are interested, please click here.
SmartScape Success! Seven Steps to get you there!
For an entirely new landscape or for a modification to an existing one, the following seven steps can help you successfully create a beautiful landscape that will be water efficient without requiring much additional irrigation once established. That’s Smart! So let’s start!
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Create a Plan! Look at your yard and make note of where the trees and shrubs are, or where they will be located. Look at your roofline or gutters. Where can you take advantage of water runoff from these to help get additional water to your SmartScape? What will be the function of this area? How much sunlight will the area receive during the day? Is there an area that you would rather spend less time maintaining (i.e. the area between the street and sidewalk)? As you can tell, the more you look and “size” up your situation the better prepared you will be to create your SmartScape. Sketch out your plan… it doesn’t matter what it looks like, just the practice and effort will help you get your plan of action together.
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Look at your Soil. Will you need to help it out? If you are planning a SmartScape bed you might want to add organic matter, otherwise known as compost. Organic matter helps the soil hold moisture for the plants and allows more oxygen in the soil.
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Plan Practical Turf areas - Use the right turf and limit your turf areas. Turf uses the most water in a landscape, so think about where you want turf. Where are the kids and/or pets going to play and where will you enjoy turf? The right type of turf can make a big difference in your water consumption. Buffalo grasses need the least water and the next most water-efficient are the Bermuda grasses. Both can take the heat and sun, needing 6 – 8 hours of sun each day. Only in extreme shade should a Fescue be considered. Fescue is a “cool season” turf and requires about 33% more water than Bermuda and about twice as much as Buffalo.
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Appropriate Plant Selection – Asking your local Nursery for SmartScape plants or low water use plants help create the demand for them. Most nurseries carry a good variety, but growers are always coming out with more, so ask! Go to http://www.txsmartscape.com/WestTX/main.asp or http://lubbockmastergardeners.tamu.edu/documents.html for help on plant varieties or ask a Master Gardener or your county extension agent. When looking at plants at the nursery look at the label, it will tell you a lot of information! How much water they use, how much sun and what temperatures can the plant tolerate.
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Efficient Irrigation – Things to consider – Cost, efficiencies and practicality. If your plan uses the best water efficient plant material for this area you might not need an additional permanent irrigation system. Most SmartScape plants and turf, after being planted and watered well the first year to get established will only require a little supplemental water. In selecting any type of sprinkler look for ones that throw out large drops and keep the water low to the ground to reduce evaporation. It doesn’t matter if it is a water hose attached sprinkler or a full-blown automatic irrigation system. Learn what drip, bubblers, nozzles, timers and Smart Controllers can do to customize your irrigation to best suit your needs and efficiencies of water conservation while being smart for your SmartScape!
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Use of Mulches – Mulches will help keep the moisture in the bed and will help keep the weeds from sprouting! Mulches come in all types and are available through any of your nursery retailers. You can use rock, bark, or other organic mulches to get them to work for you and to create the look of a beautiful SmartScape. The City of Lubbock even has free bark mulch and glass! Yes glass! Both have been processed through the City’s recycle program and are free to the public! The bark is a good organic product that will breakdown and helps your soil. The glass has been tumbled where it is broken down to a small “pea sized” or sand like product with no sharp edges! You can handle it with your bare hands. It is very colorful and works great as mulch or in a pathway. Both are available at the Recycling Center just west of 84th and Ave. P. You just have to have a way to load it and take it back to your project. They are open 8-6 M-F and Sat. 8-2. Call 775-2491 for more information.
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Proper maintenance – SmartScape beds will require you to pick up a little trash, do a little pruning, spray a little weed or grass killer and fertilize to keep your beds clear, clear and able to grow. That is the good thing about SmartScape beds, once established they will not take that much time to maintain them. For your turf areas, grow your turf tall, and don’t catch your clippings. This will help to cool the soil and reduce evaporation. Both of these practices will help keep moisture and nutrients in the soil. For those tree-shaded areas, keep your trees trimmed up. By mowing at a taller height the grass leaves can catch more sun and grow better! With whatever turf you use, regular mowing and fertilizing, as part of your maintenance program will help keep weeds down and promote a healthy yard that will use less water.
TODAY!
Water Conservation Tips Archives
This page is brought to you by the Chamber’s Water Conservation Council:
Randall Merriott (Chairman), Irrigation Dynamics
Mika Wyatt (Immediate Past Chairman), Texas A&M Agricultural Research and Extension Center
Mark Brown, Texas Cooperative Extension-Lubbock County
Dick Auld, College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Texas Tech
Matt Baker, College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Texas Tech
Jim Brown, South Plains Food Bank
Mike Buxkemper, Watermaster Irrigation Supply Inc.
Davon Cook, Buster’s Gin
Billy Demel, Atmos Energy
David Doerfert, College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Texas Tech
Don Ethridge, CASNR Water Center
Michael Farmer, College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Texas Tech
Stan Gill
Richard Griffith
Nikki Kalina, College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Texas Tech
Carmon McCain, High Plains Underground Water District
Charles McQuhae, Community Lawn Care
Sandra Offutt, City of Lubbock
James Tuttle, Tree Loving Care
If you are a member of the Lubbock Chamber of Commerce and wish to join the Water Conservation Council, or if you’d like to attend one of our meetings as a guest, please call Mary Jane Buerkle at (806) 761-7008.
Visit the following links for more information on conserving water:
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