Beginning the Xeriscaping process in your new High Point home can seem like a daunting plan in anyone’s mind, but if you follow the seven principals you can slowly make your way to an amazingly beautiful Xeriscaped yard for your new home.
Plan and Design
The first principal to Xeriscaping is plan and design. Yes, a working plan is in order for this all to work the way it is intended to. First you need to create a diagram, drawn to scale of your new homes yard. Be sure to include your house, driveway, sidewalk, water spigots, fences, and any existing trees and other elements you would like to keep. Next you need to think about what uses your yard must be capable of, entertaining, dogs running, children playing, or even curb appeal. Now make a conceptual diagram of where you want to place items, like turf, perennial beds, views, screens. Once finished, develop a planting plan that makes these areas you desire take shape, make sure to plan for full grown mature plants for your new homes yard.
Soil Amendment
Colorado soil tends to fall into two categories, sand and clay. Clay soil is dense and takes a long time to absorb and release water, while sandy soil doesn’t hold much water. To fix this nasty dirt problem, till to a 4 to 6 inch depth to loosen soil and change the texture to allow water to be stored and released. Also adding an organic material to be mixed with the clay like manure or compost can help amend the soil. These steps will help your Xeriscaped yard endure the harsh summer months when water is scarce.
The City of Aurora is offering a Xeriscape:Start to Finish Class This Saturday May 12 at 10:30 at the City of Aurora Building! Here’s a link: https://www.auroragov.org/ThingsToDo/Events/Calendar/index.htm
More to come next month: Principals 3 Efficient Irrigation, and 4 Mulch.
