Updated: Aug 5, 2022
As drought conditions continue to increase in California, the push to get rid of lawns is also increasing. One great option to replace grass is using low water groundcovers. Groundcovers can offer a blanket of green using a fraction of the water that a lawn would need.
According to the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California's BeWaterWise.com, these 4 groundcovers are ideal for Southern California:
Emerald Carpet
The ‘Emerald Carpet’ is an evergreen groundcover that grows to 1’ tall by 6’-8’ wide. It is favored by many landscapers as the manzanita of choice for inland situations. Emerald Carpet has dark green leaves and exhibits compact growth. This variety is relatively tolerant of adverse soil conditions.
Canyon Grey
This reliable shrub, typically used as a groundcover, can reach 1-2 feet tall but can spread up to 10 feet wide. It has gray green, finely divided leaves that are threadlike. Very aromatic when foliage is crushed. It does well in coastal areas with full sun. It does best with afternoon shade in warm, inland areas. This groundcover tolerates clay or sandy soil but needs well draining soil. Flowers are inconspicuous. This is a great plant for dry slopes.
Pigeon Point
‘Pigeon Point’ Coyote Bush is a compact, evergreen ground cover that grows 18”- 24” tall and 10’-12’ wide. Its leaves are green; it has white flowers that bloom in the fall but they are not overly dramatic. It is important to plant this ground cover at least 6’-8’ apart. Otherwise they will overgrow each other and begin to pile upwards. ‘Pigeon Point’ is tolerant of ocean spray and is deer resistant.
Skylark
This ceanothus shrub variety has dark blue flower clusters that bloom profusely in the spring. This smaller growing selection grows to 3’ tall and wide. This plant tolerates coastal conditions but will also grow in inland, hot valleys as it does well in clay soil. This cultivar seems to bloom longer than other varieties. It does well in full sun but will tolerate dry shade also. Leaves are bright green and glossy.
If you're ready to change out your lawn for a low water groundcover, we can help! Many water districts are offering rebates for lawn removal and updating irrigation, we can help with that too! Contact us today and see what we can do for your commercial or residential property!
It is time to up our commitment to water conservation and starting June 1st, 2022, new water restrictions will begin. The latest Drought Data has not only shown worsening conditions, it also shows that Californians have been lax in saving water the last couple of years, despite the threat of more intense drought conditions throughout California.
Los Angeles City
In Southern California, Los Angeles City areas have new restrictions for watering your landscape to no more than two days a week, and which days are determined by your street address. Also there is no watering between 9am-4pm. Watering is limited to a maximum of 15 minutes.
Different counties and metropolitan areas can implement more strict or lenient restrictions, depending on the data for their area.
Santa Clarita Valley
In Santa Clarita, the SCV Water’s Board of Directors voted Tuesday to move the Agency into Stage 2 of its Water Shortage Contingency Plan. The move comes as California and the Santa Clarita Valley continue to face a severe drought with no end in sight.
"Despite planning for dry times, this drought has become so severe that we are having to dip into our banked water supplies," said SCV Water’s General Manager Matt Stone.
“Moving to Stage 2 will place new water restrictions in place to eliminate water waste and ensure we have enough water to meet the needs of our community.”
Santa Clarita Valley Stage 2 includes stage 1 and asks for consumers to voluntarily save at least 20% more:
Make sure to check with your local area to know what's allowed. Smart meters can really help make watering at certain times easy. Check out Smart Landscaping to see how!
Do you need to redo your sprinkler system? We can help! Contact us today!
Updated: May 2, 2022
Update: April 26th, 2022: The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California begins a program that will cut outdoor watering to one day a week in parts of Los Angeles, Ventura and San Bernardino counties, affecting about six million people.
While it's wonderful California got some more rain recently, we still have drought conditions to face. For a second year in a row, Governor Newsom said more needs to be done in California, calling for cities and water agencies to now implement their second level water contingency plans to further reduce water usage and implement tougher rules. He stopped short of mandates statewide, in favor of letting local agencies figure out what is best for their areas. Restrictions would not affect agriculture either, but he did ask agencies to consider banning irrigation of lawns.
Californians did not conserve more water over the last two years, rather they used more. According to CalMatters.Org, "In January, the State Water Resources Control Board adopted emergency regulations allowing water providers to bar certain wasteful water uses, such as hosing down sidewalks with drinking water.
But water use nevertheless ticked up statewide in January compared to January
2020. The biggest increase was 19% in the desert region that includes the Palm Springs area and the Imperial Valley. The South Lahontan region, spanning the Sierra Nevada, mountain communities of Southern California and Death Valley, had the second highest increase, at 9%. Residents of the Los Angeles basin and San Diego County used 1.8% more water, while those in most of the Central Valley used 6 to 7% more.
The only regions that slightly reduced water consumption were the San Francisco Bay Area, which used 1.4% less, and the southern San Joaquin Valley, which used 0.2% less. Overall, Californians from July of last year through January conserved about 6.5% statewide compared to 2020, according to state data — falling far short of Newsom’s requested 15%."
A letter to water right holders from the State Water Board states "Despite record-breaking storms in October and December 2021, most of California is experiencing a severe drought due to the driest January and February on record. These conditions are worsening quickly and can threaten water supplies, impair critical habitat, reduce recreational opportunities, and create uncertainty for all water users.
We are experiencing historic dry conditions: February is usually California’s wettest month, but January and February 2022 were the driest we’ve seen in recorded history. Statewide, precipitation is less than half the yearly average, and dry conditions are forecast to continue through spring."
While more might be added, these are the State Water Board Emergency Regulations Requirements that went into effect on Jan 18, 2022:
Turn off decorative water fountains
Turn off/pause your irrigation system when it's raining and for two days after rain
Use an automatic shutoff nozzle on your water hose
Use a broom, not water, to clean sidewalks and driveways
Give trees just what they need: avoid overwatering
If you would like help with removing your lawn or updating your irrigation system and adding a smart controller, contact us! We are experts in turf removal, installing new irrigation systems or updating existing systems. There are even rebates to help with the costs, depending on where you live. Let us help make it easy!
