We love talking about all things gardening and water conservation through landscape change! Submit your question(s) for the waterwise plant enthusiasts – aka the Garden In A Box team – to: GardenInfo@ResourceCentral.org, and sign up for our monthly Garden In A Box newsletter for more helpful tips and answers! (Scroll to the bottom of this page to sign up)
Do you want to transform a portion of your yard from water-thirsty grass to a waterwise garden, but don’t know where to start? January-February is a great time to start brainstorming ideas in order to be ready to begin work come warm weather! Below are some questions to get you started:
1. What do you envision for your new garden?
Whether this is your first or fortieth winter thinking about what you want to accomplish in your garden this coming spring and creating a plan can help set yourself up for success. If you’re not sure where to start, try drawing a quick arial view of your property to see where a new or updated garden could be planted.
Looking for some more inspiration? Resource Central’s sister site, WaterwiseYards.org, is a place to browse local yard transformation projects and see how easy it can be to replace grass with a beautiful drought-tolerant landscape. You’ll find eco-friendly design ideas, resources, and advice from your neighbors. Additionally, you can even upload your very own waterwise yard!
2. Do you want to add to an existing xeriscape?
If you have existing waterwise garden beds, is there anything you want to improve upon from last season? Think back to your garden last season, and whether or not you noticed gaps that you want to fill, colors you’d like to add or change around, or plants you want to divide and transplant to a new area. If you’re looking to fill gaps in your garden, our Six Pack gardens could be a great option depending on the colors already in your landscape. All spring gardens will go on sale in early March 2023—sign up for our Interest List here to receive sale notifications!
3. Are you looking to start a new xeriscape, or waterwise, project?
If so, congrats! The thing to figure out is where you want to plant a new low-water garden. You can either fill in an existing garden bed (involves less prep work and is a great way to get started), or remove water-thirsty grass and replace it with waterwise plants (an awesome way to save up to 60% on your water usage).
3. If you want to replace a portion of your grass with a new waterwise garden, how will you do so?
Resource Central’s popular Lawn Removal Service team will physically remove and dispose of at least 200 square feet of maintained lawn. You also might even qualify for a significant discount! Removing part of your lawn to make space for a waterwise garden doesn’t have to be exhausting and expensive. Join the Lawn Removal Interest List here!
For a full list of lawn removal techniques, take a look at Lawn Removal 101. If you haven’t removed your grass yet but have a spot in mind, it’s not too late! Using a sod cutter makes the process doable in an afternoon. Better yet, try getting in touch with neighbors to gauge interest in sharing a sod cutter rental and splitting the cost. Save money, make new neighborhood connections, increase water savings in your community, AND create larger swaths of habitat for pollinators. Take a look at our Before & After Photo Gallery of Lawn Removal Projects for some examples of awesome projects!
4. How excited are you for garden season!?
We sure are super excited, and can’t wait to learn more about your own projects! If you have any questions about these tips, or want to share photos of landscape during the season don’t hesitate to reach out. Gardeninfo@ResourceCentral.org or 303-999-3820 x222. Happy planning!
