Easy Ways to Conserve Water in Your Garden

Irrigation is one of the systems that does a lot of work behind the scenes to make your garden look beautiful. Photo courtesy of hunterindustries.com.

Irrigation, like soil preparation or drainage, is one of the elements of landscape design that works behind the scenes. Coming on at night or in off-hours, and commonly built to retract into the ground out of sight, most automatic irrigation systems are designed to function unobserved. This makes it easy to forget how significant these systems are in keeping landscapes beautiful.  

And, it can be easy to forget how much water your garden takes up.

A quarter-acre garden in Seattle might use 34,000 gallons a month or more (using the EPA’s irrigation water budget tool). That’s like pouring 1,000 kiddie pools on your lawn in July, and 1,000 more in August.

Who can say no to some summer fun? Photo courtesy of Irish Flat.

What’s is a gardener to do if they don’t want to have 30 pool parties a day? To conserve water resources and simultaneously drive down costs, it can be tempting to try to eliminate irrigation altogether. Indeed, isn’t this part of the draw of native plants or xeriscaped gardens?

The truth is, going without irrigation is very rarely the answer. Irrigation is necessary for plants to be at their healthiest and grow to their fullest potential. Even landscapes that may one day survive without additional watering almost always need some irrigation in the first few years for successful plant establishment.

But don’t worry! Keeping your garden in tip-top shape and conserving water do not have to be contradictory ideas. Here are a couple of strategies to irrigate with less water and still give your plants everything they need.

Mulch, and re-mulch

Mulch is one of the best ways to make sure that the water you’re putting into the soil stays there. As it breaks down, it nurtures your soil, and it can be a weed suppressant, too!

Mulch has many benefits for your garden. It works with irrigation by protecting the soil from sun and wind, both of which will dry soil out. Top-up your mulch as it breaks down so you maintain this valuable protection from the elements, but don’t forget: keep mulch from touching trunks and the woody stalks of plants.

Review Irrigation Timing

Controllers might look weird and bulky, but they are usually pretty easy to use. Some even work with apps so you can monitor your water use from your phone! Photo courtesy of hunterindustries.com.

As you may already know, running your irrigation in the middle of a hot day is a sure way to be inefficient with your water. The fine mist from your sprays, especially, will evaporate quickly. Try to irrigate at night, when the water has time to soak in before it gets hot. You can control the timing through your irrigation controller.

Try Drip Irrigation

See the drip irrigation lined up on this planted slope? Placing drip tubing along a slope like this ensures you’re getting the best coverage for your plants.

Drip tubing isn’t right for all areas in all gardens, but it is often worth consideration since it uses much less water than sprays or rotors (sometimes half as much!). Some tubing is meant to stay on grade, but always try to put it under mulch so you’re watering the soil, not wood chips. For subsurface drip, make sure the tubing is staked underneath the mulch AND a few inches of soil so the water is right at the roots. If you’re curious, talk to your irrigation designer about whether drip irrigation would work for your garden.

Install a Rain Sensor

Nothing should compromise the aesthetics of your home, but don’t shy away from rain sensors. Sensors are quite small and are easy to install out of sight. Make sure they’re not under your roof overhang, otherwise they won’t work correctly! Photo courtesy of hunterindustries.com.

If you don’t have a rain sensor already, look into it. Most irrigation controllers are compatible with rain sensors these days, and rain sensors are usually just $20-$30. The rain sensor gathers data from your garden, and talks to your controller to pause or start irrigation as needed. Your irrigation designer will know what rain sensor will tie in with your controller.

Happy watering!