Water-wise Gardens

Creating a new garden or redoing your existing one can be one of the most exciting projects and also one of the most rewarding. But it is not always easy to get these gardens going – especially not when the weather is not playing along as you'd like it to. And these days predicting the weather is no easy task, therefore a garden that requires the least maintenance and attention and contains plants that are tough is the  

I live in Gauteng and although we have had a lot of rain here over the past two years, there are areas that are extremely dry in other parts of the country (and you never know when drought will be part of your summer) and therefore it is essential to plan a garden that does not require a lot of water in these areas. 

But don’t think that shrubs and cacti are the only plants you can opt for when planning a water wise garden! No, there are also quite a few colourful bedding plants that thrive with minimal care and strategic watering. You can have a beautiful and creative garden, without wasting water – in fact you can even save some water. The trick is to plan and let those creative juices flow. 

We asked JJ van Rensburg, Horticulturist at Garden World in Johannesburg, to give us some advice on how to create beautiful water-wise gardens

Q: What must readers who want to establish a new garden in such an area keep in mind when planning their garden?

A: “Zoning is very important. Plants that require more water must be planted together and plants requiring less water must also be grouped together in a different spot.”

Q: Which plants would you recommend for such an area and why? 

A: “Very often one thinks of aloes and succulents, but plants such as Lavenders, Rosemary, Wild irises (Dietes), Red Hot Pokers (Kniphophia), Wild Garlic (Tulbachia) and Butterfly Bushes (Buddlea) will survive with very little water. 

There is a myth that when planting indigenous plants, you don’t have to water you garden. This is untrue. South Africa has various indigenous tropical plants such as Arums (Zanthedeschia), Strelitzia and Forest Bell Bushes (Mackaya bella) which will require fair amounts of water. Indigenous plants originating from your region would have adapted to your climate and natural rainfall. 

Make use of ground covers that will leave no soil exposed to prevent evaporation.”

Stay away from large leaved tropical plants. Make sure you plant trees to cool down the immediate environment and provide shade to the undergrowth.”

Q: What can one do to make a garden like this interesting? 

A: “There is much more to designing a garden than to just planting of plants. Gravel paths, pots, focal points, water features – yes this is possible even in a water-wise garden, statuary, garden trellis and arbours, steelwork, gazebos – the list is endless!”

Q: Please give our readers some additional water-wise tips for the garden?

A: “When watering your garden, water during the cooler time of the day. 

Use sprinklers with a low projectile and large droplets. 

Prevent run-off water from leaving your property by lifting the edges of your lawn to ‘dish’ the lawns and terrace the slopes to slow down the runoff. 

MULCH, MULCH, MULCH… by putting a layer of straw, bark, pebbles or leaves  over your flowerbeds and around the base of the plants, you are providing your roots with a blanket keeping moisture in, roots cool in summer and warm in winter.” 

More tips for water-wise gardening:

● What type of lawn do you have? Did you know that lawn (Kikuyu) uses a lot of water? Reducing your lawn surface will already help you to save water, whilst planting lawn that uses less water like Kweek or Buffalo is also a very good idea. 

● Another clever way to save water in the garden is to maintain it. Get rid of those unwanted plants (especially weeds) and plant plants that have deeper root systems and which will thus utilise less water.

● Get your irrigation right. The best irrigation system is drip irrigation – it uses 25% of water used by normal irrigation systems with the same effect, and can even be placed under lawns.

● Consider harvesting rainwater.

What is this? You harvest rainwater when you collect it in a tank and store it to be used again. Rainwater can be used outdoor to water your garden and lawn or even to fill the pool when necessary. It can also be used indoors to wash clothes in, flush the toilet with or even to bath in. Properly treated rainwater can serve as emergency drinking water or even primary drinking water if no other source is available.

The advantages of harvesting rainwater:

• You can save a lot of water. Water is an essential part of our existence and it is our responsibility to save this precious resource how and when we can.

• You have a back up plan. Everyone living in South Africa knows that the municipality often switches off water and electricity for routine maintenance because there is such strain on these resources. Harvesting rainwater will equip you with some back up water when your water gets turned off. 

• You can save money. You get rainwater for free – and if you are living in Gauteng and you had one of these tanks, you would’ve been able to save a lot of water. Using harvested water instead of tap water will help you save on your water bills and leave you with some extra money to spend on something else.
 

Where can you read more about these helpful products?

Visit the following websites for more information or to purchase one of these tanks:

● http://www.rainharvesting.co.za/

● http://www.freerain.co.za/

● http://www.raincell.co.za/

● http://www.jojotanks.co.za/

Images supplied by Garden World.