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Proper soil preparation is key to successful water conservation
and growing in our area. If you are preparing a new lawn or
bed area, add 3 cubic yards organic material for every 1,000
square feet of landscape area. Rototill to a depth of 8 inches.
Add organic material to garden areas each year to improve
and aerate the soil.
Change turf areas on steep slopes, hard-to-water areas and
narrow strips to low-water ground covers such as
- Veronica,
- Thyme,
- Yarrow,
- Blue
Fescue,
- Ice
Plant
- Creeping
Potentilla.
Replace
lawn areas with perennial and shrub beds.
If
you have a bluegrass lawn consider replacing it completely
with a fescue or buffalo grass lawn. If you don't want to
take it all out, consider limiting bluegrass to high use areas
near the house. If you have a large lot, try using more drought
tolerant grasses mixed with wildflowers for areas farther
from the house.
In
the spring, water twice a week with long, deep waterings to
encourage healthy deep roots. Water approximately 20 to 30
minutes per zone. Avoid frequent shallow sprinklings that
lead to shallow root development. Aerate in the spring to
break up our compact soils; this will help your lawn and prevent
runoff.
Irrigate
only lawn areas with pop-up spray heads. Make sure they are
adjusted properly to avoid watering patios, walks and driveways.
Trees, shrubs and flowers in bed areas should be irrigated
by a drip system. A good rule of thumb for drip systems is
4 drip emitters per tree, 2 per shrub and 1 per perennial.
Mulch your beds to a depth of 3 inches with organic material
such as wood chips, bark or shredded aspen. Use weed barrier
fabrics (geotextiles) that allow water and air into the soil
but discourage weeds. Limit rock mulch areas; they tend to
increase soil and air temperature. In steep areas, rock, cobble
and boulders may be used where bark mulch could be washed
away. Avoid putting black plastic under the rock; it will
increase runoff. Use a weed barrier fabric instead.
Finally, Xeriscape! You have heard the word many times before.
It is derived from the Greek work "xeros," meaning
dry and was coined by the Denver Water Department in the late
1970's. Another good idea is to group plants together that
have approximately the same water requirements Remember, we
live at an elevation of 6,000 feet, with windy, dry conditions.
There are numerous sources and books available for plant material
that works well within our planting zone.
There
are many beautiful plants that work well in Castle Pines North.
A few great low-water shrubs that work in our area
are
- Mugo
Pine,
- Sandcherry,
- Viburnum,
- Sprirea,
- Potentilla,
- Apache
Plum,
-
Russian Sage,
- Current,
- Raspberry,
- Mountain
Mahogany,
- Rose,
- Cotoneaster.
For
perennials try
- Yarrow,
- Sage,
- Paintbrush,
- Coreopsis,
- Daylily,
- Gaillardia,
- Ice
Plant,
- Penstemon,
- Black
Eyed Susan,
- Lavender,
- Flax,
- Aster
- Catmint.
There
are many more that work well also.
Good
luck and happy gardening! I hope you can use some of these
ideas and that you have a successful growing season!
[Tim
Dunn has a bachelor's degree in landscape architecture and
has worked professionally in Colorado since 1981. He is available
for consultation and can be reached at 303-814-7778 or tadunn@qwest.net]
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