The Old Folks Home

[perchie.girl]

But how does that no watering policy work in the long run, won't everyone's lawn dying just contribute to the problem? The ground won't be able to bind water anymore and with no plants to provide shade, the evaporation will be even quicker. Or am I looking at this the wrong way? It's not a situation I'm all that familiar with, we usually get more rain than we need.

binding the water is an issue EVERYWHERE... The percentage of added dry ground will be a drop in the bucket litterally.

Here in the city all city scapes are watered with Purple water lines that deliver recycled water from sewage treatment plants. So The golf courses parks and freeways look nice...

There is a difference in just letting your lawn die and xeriscaping though. You can have a whole butterfly garden with low water plants.

But a lawn requres a large amount of water.... Even the hybred Fescues require a boat load of water and they only Sip.

I got to go now.

deb

 

[Peep_Show]

When living in Las Vegas, NV, we were informed by the landscaping authorities that lawn uses up more water per square foot than a swimming pool.

 

[vehve]

Ok, by lawn in this instance I meant more like whatever plants people might plant in their yard, just something living instead of bare dirt or sand.

I did water our lawn a bit last summer, for a few weeks, but luckily it's not something that usually needs to be done around here.

 

[ronott1]

Ok, by lawn in this instance I meant more like whatever plants people might plant in their yard, just something living instead of bare dirt or sand.

I did water our lawn a bit last summer, for a few weeks, but luckily it's not something that usually needs to be done around here.

Because of evaporation, low humidity and no rain, we often have to add an inch of water three times a week to keep a traditional grass lawn alive here.

There are charts for our area that are posted to tell us how much water we need to add for the type of grass used.

I have turf type fescue, semi dwarf grass--Roots go down to 4 feet. It takes a lot less water than Kentucky blue grass. Cactus and succulents are better though.

 

[superchemicalgirl]

I'm out to work on the driveway some more (sixth day)- with my trusty shovel. Apparently that is "character building," I'm almost 5 feet tall, my character towers above me -almost like a cone! Heavy too.

I'm so sorry, Diva. Isn't there a neighborhood kid that you can scare into building his own character?

Ok, by lawn in this instance I meant more like whatever plants people might plant in their yard, just something living instead of bare dirt or sand.

I did water our lawn a bit last summer, for a few weeks, but luckily it's not something that usually needs to be done around here.

At least you don't have to mow dirt.

 

[vehve]

Except right in front of our kitchen window... I'm having trouble with that spot, it gets virtually no sunlight. It's on the north side of the house, underneath a huge maple tree. I tried planting some grass that's supposed to do well in the shade, but I didn't have much luck with it. I hope it will grow better this year.

 

[casportpony]

Kathy, your comment "ducks are in heaven," had me holding my heart, then I realized you meant "heaven on earth," Feel much better now - whew that was scary. I tend to take everything seriously.

They're quite happy and alive swimming in the pasture, lol, along with the 12 wild Mallards and 4 Canadian geese that thought our property was worth checking out. Was gonna take a picture, but didn't feel like putting on the boots to go out there.

-Kathy

 

[superchemicalgirl]

They're quite happy and alive swimming in the pasture,
-Kathy

You should tell Diva they're swimming with the fishes.

 

[Bunnylady]

Vehve, I don't know much about the grasses that grow in your part of the world, but around here, I have often had to explain to people that, when it comes to grass, "shade tolerant" means, "it puts up with more shade than most other kinds of grass." Then I tell them that, as a class, grasses don't like shade - with most of them, the more sun, the better they do. So when they put even so-called "shade tolerant" St. Augustine sod in the dense shade of a Live Oak, it's going to get thin, and pathetic, and eventually die out; it's just going to take longer to do it than, say, a hybrid Bermuda (notoriously intolerant of shade).

If I were trying to get something growing between the north side of a house and a large tree, I'd go with some type of ground cover other than a grass.

 

[Bunnylady]

Quote: After a major hurricane a few years ago, my ducks literally got to do this - in a formerly very much landlocked pond in my pasture. I still don't know where the fish came from!