Making a Difference

This piece concludes our four-part water-sensitive landscape design (WSLD) series. Managing the landscape during an extended drought means more than making smart plant choices. We’ve looked at shifting climate patterns, nurturing soil biology, and adjusting our approach to designing gardens. But it all comes down to water.

Increasing your garden’s permeability not only reduces runoff but provides greater area for releasing captured water so it can recharge the soil. Photo: Tom Rau/Urban Water Group

This drought is hanging on and on. Finding ways to keep our gardens alive takes more thought and action then it used to. I did the easy stuff years ago: no turf grass, no high-water-use plants (except a few really great ones), and no spray irrigation. I resolved compaction issues so my soil can absorb more rain and I keep a good layer of mulch in the garden to feed the soil biology. And I use more native, low-water-use plants.

I grow plants because they help sequester carbon, help keep my place in the world cooler, and support butterflies and all kinds of other creatures. While I may not be able to fix t...