3 Ways To Reduce Your Outside Water Usage

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Even if you have a great irrigation system set-up around your home, there are still steps you can take to use water more effectively. This is especially important if you live in a drought-prone area where water is a really limited resource.

Limit the Use of Grass

Grass is a very water-hungry plant. Grass needs a lot of water in order to stay lush and green. If you don't water your grass regularly, your grass can easily die.

Due to the large amount of water that grass needs in order to stay lush, it is a type of vegetation that you should limit the use of. Plant grass and place it in areas where you will actually use it and enjoy it. Don't fall into the trap of covering all of your exposed property with grass; it is not the best use of water or space.

Instead of planting grass everywhere, plant native plants that are drought resistant. Native plants should be able to survive off the natural rainfall of the air with very little supplemental water needed.

Add Shade Trees

Next, add some additional shade trees to your property. Shade trees will help reduce the soil temperatures in the nearby area and will help prevent too much water from evaporating from the soil. Shade trees not only look great and can help cool off your home, they can help you reduce your overall water consumption over the long-term.

Shade trees will require some extra water when they are first planted, but will help reduce water consumption overall in the long-term.

Use Lots of Mulch

Mulch can really help reduce your water use as well. Place a couple of inches of mulch around the base of all the trees in your yard. You can also place mulch under any bushes in your yard or around flowerbeds as well.

A thick layer of mulch acts much like a shade tree. Mulch helps control and regular the temperature of your soil. It can help prevent water from evaporating too quickly from the soil. It can also reduce the presence of water-hungry weeds as well.

Place mulch anywhere that you can in your yard. Mulch will make your yard look nice and uniform, while helping you reduce the amount of water that is wasted watering your flowers, bushes, and trees.

Limit the water that your irrigation system uses by limiting the use of grass on your property. Plant shade trees and use lots of mulch; both of these things will reduce soil temperatures and decrease the rate of evaporation of water from your soil.

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