Xeriscaping Basics
The 7 Principles of Xeriscaping, Explained
Denver Water coined "xeriscape" in 1981, and seven principles still decide whether a low-water landscape thrives or fails. Each one, explained the way it plays out in a real yard.
Topic
How-To Guides
Step-by-step projects for building a xeriscape: removing lawn, converting sprinklers to drip, prepping soil, building a dry creek bed, and caring for new plants through their first year.
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How-To Guides
Gravel vs. Wood Mulch: Which Belongs Where in a Xeriscape
Gravel or wood mulch? Each is right in different parts of the yard. A side-by-side comparison of water, weeds, heat, fire and upkeep, plus exactly where to use each and how deep.
How-To Guides
How to Remove Your Lawn: 3 Methods Compared (Cost, Effort, Speed)
Sheet mulching, sod cutting or solarization? How to remove a lawn for xeriscaping, step by step: what each method costs, how long it takes, and which one fits your project.
Design Ideas
Rock Garden Design: How to Do Stone Right
The difference between a rock garden and a pile of rocks is design. How to bury and group boulders, build a crevice garden, mix the soil, and pick plants that make stone look like it grew there.
Regional Guides
Xeriscaping in Las Vegas: Plants, Design & the SNWA Turf Rebate
Las Vegas pays more to remove lawn than anywhere in America: $5 per square foot from SNWA, plus $2 more for LVVWD customers. The local guide to Mojave plants, watering days and HOA law.
How-To Guides
First-Year Xeriscape Care: The Make-or-Break Season
A xeriscape isn't low-water in year one; it's a bed of young plants with three-inch roots. The watering taper, weed patrol and first-winter tasks that decide whether your landscape thrives.
How-To Guides
Overwatering: The #1 Killer of Xeriscape Plants
More xeriscape plants die of kindness than drought. How to spot overwatering in drought-tolerant plants, which species it kills first, and the deep-and-infrequent schedule that saves them.
How-To Guides
How to Build a Dry Creek Bed That Actually Handles Runoff
Most dry creek beds are decoration that fails in the first real storm. How to build one that actually moves runoff: routing, sizing, rock sizes, lining, and the mistakes that cause washouts.
How-To Guides
Hell Strip Landscaping: Fix the Hardest Part of Your Yard
The strip between sidewalk and street is hot, dry, salted and stomped on, which is why grass fails there. How to landscape a hell strip: rules to check, tough plants, mulch and layout.
How-To Guides
How to Install Drip Irrigation: A Beginner's Guide
Install drip irrigation in an afternoon: the parts you actually need, how many emitters each plant gets, and the beginner mistakes (no pressure regulator, too many emitters) that sink first systems.
How-To Guides
How to Stop Weeds in Gravel (For Good)
Weeds don't grow up through gravel so much as down into it, sprouting in the dust between stones. How to stop them: depth, edging, fabric (and when to skip it), flame, vinegar and a monthly habit.
How-To Guides
The Xeriscape Maintenance Calendar (Season by Season)
Xeriscape maintenance is real but light: a few focused sessions a season instead of a weekly mow. What to cut back, when to water (including winter), what to leave standing and what to skip.