It has been said that “brown is the new green”, really?! I cannot bear seeing my garden in brown after I spent so much money planting flowers and time working to maintain beauty, but here in California we are under a severe drought, to avoid incurring in penalties we must not water lawns and I had to adapt too. I am looking around in neighborhood and do not like what I see outside the homes, some people are letting their gardens go shabby and it is not necessary. Luckily there are many alternative solutions if you are just starting a new landscape or rethinking the old one.
Before you design garden and curb appeal, create a landscape that removes the water-thirsty lawn, make a chemical-free environment and enhance the outdoor living with beautiful stones to match the exterior colors of the home. Create a sustainable landscape that is not only beautiful, but provides a bio-diverse environment that is gentle on the earth and welcomes the birds, the bees and the butterflies.
Plants to choose for the drought are low-water plants that give an all-season appeal. Mix a variety of ground cover, decorative grasses, fountain grasses and wispy green, orange, pink and purple blades grasses, which move in the wind creating a certain musicality, if you can picture it. I have a bunch of them and love the swing. Alternate colors for interest and intersperse these grasses between the stones, cover the ground with pea gravel instead of grass to allow excess water to soak into the earth rather than run off into the street and use lots of colorful pots in which you might want to plant some vegetables, or more cacti and succulents.
Don’t dwell on drought, embrace it, water-conserving gardens can be as colorful as any other and you don’t have to spend your weekends cutting grass anymore. Ciao,
Valentina
http://www.valentinadesigns.com
Copyright © 2015 Valentina Cirasola, All Rights Reserved
Valentina Cirasola has been in business as a designer since 1990. She has helped people realizing their dreams in homes, offices, interiors and exteriors. She designs landscape as a complement to the residential design concept to reflect the lifestyle of her clients. She loves creating garden spaces for entertainment, relaxation and for those who cook she likes to create a spice garden. Check out her three published books on regional Italian cuisine and color theory, available on:
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