Native to Southern California and other southern states of North America, as well as Central and South America, Agave plants are a unique plant that can provide many benefits with its existence, whether naturally occurring or newly planted.
One of the Agave's best characteristics is its ability to grow in dry conditions, making it perfect for xeriscape landscaping. 'Xeric' means drought tolerant and agaves are a welcome addition to any landscape in the arid conditions of Southern California.
Part of the monocot genus, agaves are distinctive with their succulent leaves forming rosette shapes. While they can look similar to aloe, which are also monocots, they are not closely related. Growing much larger and with more substantial thorns than aloe, agaves can be bright green to grey and silvery in color. They store water in their leaves and the leaves are fibrous with thorny teeth to protect them from being eaten. When they flower, they send off a tall, singular shoot, up to forty feet, with tubular blooms, pictured to the left.
Easy to take care of, agaves are super low maintenance. Their roots require air and water so they need good drainage, and can even do well in pots with a cactus or succulent soil mixture that has organic porous materials that helps trap air and keep the soil from suffocating the roots. They grow slowly, but once established, they are very hardy.
In addition to growing from seeds, most agaves produce 'pups' or young plants from runners. They are easy to propagate making them fun to grow.
Agave is edible and is used to make tequila, which is made from blue agave. Also harvested from agave is the syrup, a sweetener which is sweeter than sugar, requiring less for the same sweetness.
Adding agave is a natural choice for a Southern California garden. Having a variety of shapes and textures can make a xeriscape garden more visibly appealing and agave certainly delivers!
If you want help to plan your landscape project, let us help. We have experts in all areas of landscaping, and can handle projects any size. We also offer maintenance programs for commercial and private properties. Contact us today!
Change can be good! Many people in Southern California are have a hard time giving up their lawn and going natural with native trees and plants. This can not only save water and money, the native landscape is more interesting and varied. It also takes less care overall and less water once the roots are established.
It takes a multi-pronged approach to maximize water utilization and conservation with landscaping. Removing turf grass is one of the most water conscious adjustments a property owner can make to reduce their water usage. Also, there are rebates available to help mitigate the cost, and the new landscape will save you water and money going forward.
Converting irrigation systems to drip, hand-watering or installing water efficient micro-spray systems or rotating nozzles ensures that landscape watering is as efficient as possible.
Finally, the addition of a sustainable approach in the new landscape works to reduce or prevent wasteful runoff through the use of a rainwater capture or filtration system.
There are many great native trees and plants that do well in our climate. Here are some good contenders from BeWaterWise.com for your native garden.
Are you ready to switch to a native garden? Contact us! At Pacific Vista Landscape Service, we can help you through the rebate process and are experts in all the essential elements, from turf removal to smart irrigation systems, it takes to create an efficient native garden.
New Rebate Program for Replacing Lawn With Native Landscaping
Southern Californians looking for ways to save water and money are getting a helping hand from the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California just as summer temperatures are heating up.
Metropolitan launched its new Landscape Transformation Program, offering residents and businesses $1 for every square foot of thirsty grass they replace with more water efficient native plants and irrigation systems.
The district also kicked off its summer advertising and outreach campaign today. The multi-million dollar “365” campaign encourages Southern Californians to conserve water every day and reminds them to take advantage of Metropolitan’s rebate programs—including cash back for water-saving washing machines, toilets, sprinkler nozzles, smart irrigation systems and other devices and appliances, in addition to transforming their landscapes.
“Southern Californians have learned the value of saving water. They understand water is a limited resource, especially after the recent drought. But sometimes we all need a little nudge and a little extra incentive to keep using water as efficiently as possible. Our programs and campaign offer that incentive,” said Metropolitan General Manager Jeffrey Kightlinger.
Details about the new landscape program and all of Metropolitan’s rebates are available at Metropolitan’s online water-savings portal bewaterwise.com. The mobile-friendly site offers tips, educational materials, how-to videos and classes on how to be more water efficient.
Metropolitan helped change the way Southern Californians see their yards and open spaces with its popular turf removal program in 2014-2015. That program, the largest anywhere in the country, spurred the replacement of 160 million square feet of grass during one of California’s worst droughts. This time around, instead of a short-term urgent drought response, Metropolitan’s new Landscape Transformation Program will be ongoing, with up to $50 million in applications accepted a year. Some Metropolitan member agencies may provide additional incentives on top of the $1 a square foot.
“Since the turf rebate program ended three years ago, residents have been asking for its return. We used lessons learned from the earlier program in developing the new Landscape Transformation Program. We’ve incorporated new requirements to drive a sustainable approach, encouraging our long-term commitment to help Southern Californians use less water,” said Bill McDonnell, Metropolitan’s water use efficiency manager.
Another key part of that commitment is Metropolitan’s new 365 campaign which builds on Metropolitan’s H2Love conservation campaign. With the tagline, “Every day is a chance to save water. And money,” the campaign not only encourages viewers to conserve, it tells them how to get financial help doing so with rebates available at bewaterwise.com.
Southern Californians will see the campaign everywhere—from a television commercial by an award-winning director (above) to online and social media ads to billboards and even small posters in local convenience stores and on lunch trucks. And it will be multilingual, translated into Spanish, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese and Filipino.
In addition, the campaign finds creative ways to reach diverse audiences, including using on-air personalities on Spanish-language channels, a Chinese-language game show and special events, such as Viva Los Dodgers.
If you would like help with the new landscape transformation program, our professionals at Pacific Vista landscape Services are experts and can help with the rebate process to replace your current landscaping with beautiful plants that save water and money! Call us today for a free consultation at 661-222-7525.
The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California is a state-established cooperative of 26 cities and water agencies serving nearly 19 million people in six counties. The district imports water from the Colorado River and Northern California to supplement local supplies, and helps its members to develop increased water conservation, recycling, storage and other resource-management programs.
