Beautiful landscaping can be resource-efficient too.

Source: CUSTOM HOME Magazine
Publication date: 2009-09-15

By Sharon O'Malley

Water-conserving landscaping is no longer reserved for dusty yards in Southwestern states. As more developers and landscape architects foresee water shortages for even historically rain-rich regions, they're designing private lawns and common spaces with deep-rooted native plants that thrive with minimal watering. And they're investing in computer-regulated irrigation devices that deliver the precise amount of moisture needed to sustain each plant—and not a drop more.

“Certainly, there was a wake-up call [a couple of years ago] in the Southeast, which hadn't been used to dealing with water shortages,” says Alex Wilson, executive editor of <i>Environmental Building News</i> and founder/ president of BuildingGreen.

“In Houston, water availability isn't an issue,” says Michael Strong, vice president of Houston-based GreenHaus Builders. “Water's cheap here; we get a ton of rain. The big deal is that it's not going to be that way for long.”

Water-conscious builders—and many green building programs—rank landscaping practices that minimize the need for outdoor watering at least as high as “smart” irrigation controllers, water-permeable paving products, and systems that capture rainwater or recycle graywater from a home's showers and sink drains. But a true water-conscious plan includes elements of each strategy.

“Limiting the need for irrigation should be the first concern,” says Matthew Nielsen, development manager for Windermere on the Lake, Connecticut's first planned community of LEED-rated luxury homes. The first item on a landscape designer's plan, then, should be drought-tolerant native plants, which thrive on whatever rain falls in a local area; using as little thirsty, shallow-rooted turf as the homeowner can tolerate is equally important.

“We encourage people to rethink what's beautiful,” explains Maureen Mahle, LEED for Homes program manager at Steven Winter Associates in Norwalk, Conn. “Homeowners are more open to [less turf and more native plants] than builders tend to recognize.”

Another tactic: small trenches around gardens and dips in the topography that cause rainwater to puddle around plants with roots that can tolerate it. “The key to conserving water in the landscaping is, No. 1, the way you create the lots, so you retain the natural rainfall as long as possible before it falls off,” says Tucson, Ariz., builder John Wesley Miller.

Following the creation of a smart layout and careful plant selection, products designed to further conserve and better manage water on the property also come into play. Creating a yard that requires little watering lets a homeowner get by using captured rainwater instead of potable water. Rainwater catchment systems—ranging from large vessels with attached garden hoses to underground cisterns that work in tandem with a sophisticated distribution system—harvest runoff from roofs and gutters.

Another technique is to distribute graywater—that is, water collected from household drains (not the toilet) that can be reused for irrigation—although it's one that builders and some jurisdictions aren't warming to quickly.

For the parts of the landscape that <i>do</i> need regular watering, water-conscious builders rely on drip irrigators that slowly wet only the plant that needs attention rather than spraying water over a whole lawn. Drip irrigators are rigged to timers to deliver a precise amount of water on a schedule that eliminates unnecessary watering. The newest irrigation systems are so “smart,” in fact, that they can sense whether and how much it has rained and will skip a scheduled watering if it's not needed. They are programmable to recognize the type of plant being irrigated and to deliver the specific amount of water each species needs, when it needs it.

Just as important to a landscape design is controlling stormwater runoff, which can take with it excess chemicals and sediment.

A low-tech way to direct rainwater back into the soil instead of out onto the street and into storm drains is to hardscape with permeable materials. Unlike blacktop, these materials let water percolate down through joints between or through pores in their surfaces. Likewise, plantable pavers are designed with openings through which the landscaper can plant grass.

Regardless of method used, Miller says builders are in the best position to change the water-wasting habits of their home buyers. “We can have a major, positive influence,” he notes. “It's not too late to change.”—<i>Sharon O'Malley is a freelance writer in College Park, Md. This article first appeared in</i> EcoHome.

Florida Water Star program:

www.sjrwmd.com/floridawaterstar

WaterSense (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency):

www.epa.gov/watersense/pp/new_homes.htm

Water – Use It Wisely:

www.wateruseitwisely.com

WaterWiser (American Water Works Association):

www.awwa.org/Resources/content.cfm?ItemNumber=29269&navItemNumber=1561

HydroPoint Data Systems. The WeatherTRAK evapotranspiration controller automatically adjusts irrigation schedules based on landscape needs and local weather conditions. According to its maker, HydroPoint, WeatherTRAK eliminates landscape overwatering and saves four times more water than any other technology. The device draws on information delivered wirelessly from 27,000 weather stations to automatically schedule irrigation based on the temperature outdoors, how much it has rained, and how much water each plant needs. 800.362.8774. www.weathertrak.com.

Netafim USA. Bioline Dripperline disperses wastewater through a modular drip irrigation system. Its flexible tubing delivers a slow, steady stream of water directly to plants' roots—even those in oddly shaped and hard-to-water areas—thereby eliminating the overspray, staining, and slippery surface problems common with other irrigation systems. Better still, the product is said to use 30 percent to 70 percent less water than traditional sprinklers. 888.638.2346. www.netafim-usa-wastewater.com.

Soil Retention. Drivable Grass is comprised of tilelike, 2-foot-by-2-foot concrete squares connected via a grid system. Lattice-style holes and cracks in the flexible paving mat facilitate grass seed root penetration into the soil, anchoring it firmly in place. The mat's porous nature also filters moisture into the underlying soil, increasing on-site water retention and reducing runoff. 800.346.7995. www.soilretention.com.

Clivus Multrum. The manufacturer's custom-designed graywater system includes a “dosing basin” as the collection point for all of a home's graywater. Made of rigid plastic, it contains level switches and an effluent pump or gravity siphon (if adequate slope is available). When an amount of graywater sufficient to create a 1 1/2-inch flooding dose within the irrigation chamber has collected in the dosing basin, the pump (or siphon) engages. Because the irrigation chamber is flooded throughout its length, water and nutrients are carried evenly to surrounding plants. 800.425.4887. www.clivusmultrum.com.

The Toro Co. Toro's Lawn Master II landscape timer offers three watering program options and satisfies the multiple-option timer requirement of communities with water restrictions in place. A large LCD screen, a programming dial, and selection buttons let homeowners choose which days to water and how long each zone will be watered. A sensor shuts off the irrigation system if it rains. 800.367.8676. www.toro.com.

Rain Bird Corp. The Gardener's Drip Kit includes all the connections, tubing, emitters, and tools needed to install Rain Bird's drip irrigation system to an outdoor faucet or underground irrigation system. The drip releases water directly to the soil's surface, where it then soaks down to plants' roots. Rain Bird says the all-in-one kit is a re-engineered version of its professional-grade drip components, and is therefore easier to install. 800.724.6247. www.rainbird.com.

Aaron's Rain Barrels. Leominster, Mass.-based craftsman Aaron Pratt fashions these rain barrels from 20 pounds of recycled plastic or 110 pounds of oak, brass, or steel. Each features two spigots and connects directly to a home's rain gutter downspouts. A removable zinc irrigation spigot can attach to a regular garden hose, and a shutoff valve enables homeowners to leave it open for drip irrigation. The 58-gallon plastic rain barrel is fully enclosed for safety. The wooden barrels (shown) are reclaimed from Kentucky distilleries. 978.790.1816. www.ne-design.net.

Oldcastle Architectural Product Group (Belgard). The permeable pavers in Belgard's Environmental Series are made of concrete and separated by joints filled with crushed stones. Water enters the joints between the pavers and filters through the stone layers; the pollutant-free water that remains is then absorbed into the soil. Suitable for patios, driveways, walkways, pools, and other areas, the pavers allow for modular and random installation in patterns resembling natural cobblestones. Multiple shapes, colors, and patterns—including Subterra stone (shown)—are available. 877.235.4273. www.belgard.biz.

Pine Hall Brick Co. RainPave clay brick pavers from Pine Hall Brick enable stormwater to filter into the soil instead of draining into streams and rivers. The company says the permeable pavers satisfy state and local stormwater management requirements and are easier to install than some competing products, because their sizes vary only slightly. The pavers also feature the same color throughout, so they won't fade, and reportedly will last more than a century once in place. 800.334.8689. www.pinehallbrick.com.