Xeriscaping: An Environmentally-friendly Landscaping Technique

Xeriscaping is a new landscaping technique designed to help you conserve water and improve the health of your property. The concept is simple: improve your yard's ability to conserve water by reintroducing native, water-efficient plants into your lawn and gardens. When paired with a water-smart inground sprinkler system, xeriscaped properties are a breeze to maintain and an affordable option for budget-savvy homeowners.

Common Xeriscaping Principles

Xeriscaping combines a number of simply principles in order to create a stunning natural landscape. The following are a few factors to consider when xeriscaping your property:

1. Replace traditional high-maintenance grasses with alternative ground cover, like clover or hearty ornamental grasses.
2. Use decks and patios to cut down on lawn areas and increase your outdoor living space.
3. Always follow the recommendations of a Nutri-Lawn lawn care professional when applying fertilizer to your yard. Over-fertilizing promotes weak, succulent growth which is susceptible to insect and disease damage. What's more, over-fertilized plants consume more water.
4. Consider using trees and shrubs to create wind barriers to protect your yard from desiccation (drying out).

Xeriscaping Preparations

If you're thinking about xeriscaping your property, the automatic sprinkler system installers at Nutri-Lawn recommend that you assess the conditions of your current landscape first. The following are a few things worth considering:

1. How do site conditions affect moisture retention on your property? Are you working with a lot of slopes, poor drainage, and sun exposure?
2. What type of soil is your yard comprised of?
3. Are there any areas that are shaded by a building or tree? If so, you'll need to treat these microclimates differently during the planting process.
4. Is the majority of your yard facing west or south? These directions often receive the most sun and thus often experience hotter and drier conditions.

Amend the Soil For Best Results

The inground sprinkler system installers at Nutri-Lawn highly recommend testing your soil's drainage abilities prior to performing any xeriscaping. This is because most soil types in the Ottawa region have some difficulties retaining water. To test your yard's drainage, simply dig a test planting hole somewhere in your yard. Fill the hole with water. If it drains quickly, fill it again. If water remains in the hole after six hours, you will need to improve the soil by adding organic matter, like mulch.

Which Plants Should I Pick?

The biggest trick to successfully xeriscaping your yard is to select plants that are drought-resistant and capable of growing in Ottawa's unique climate. As such, the inground sprinkler system installers at Nutri-Lawn recommend that you select trees, shrubs, and ground cover based on its ability to adapt to your yard's unique conditions. When it doubt, always try native plants as they adapt better and can resist longer periods of drought. These local plants also have lower fertilizer needs.

While perennial ground covers like Thymus, Sedum and Artemesia are recognized as drought-resistant, make sure that you provide them with plenty of water during their first year of life. This will help ensure that their roots are well established and that they'll be capable of withstanding harsher conditions going forward.

For more information on water-smart inground sprinkler technology and how xeriscaping can benefit your Ottawa property, contact the experts at Nutri-Lawn Ottawa.