Waterwise Gardening - Zanthorrea Nursery, Washington

1. i Waterwise Gardening
Water - not a drop to spare! It is possible to water twice a week and have a great
garden which is healthy and colourful. Just follow these waterwise recommendations
and you will save water and also save on your water bills.
• Paving • It’s automatic
Create some non-planted areas such as paving Install an efficient watering system and check it
and mulch. Ensure sprinklers are adjusted to regularly. Monitor and adjust application rates
water garden beds and not paving. on a regular basis.
• Shelter • Gardeners’ helpers
Make use of windbreaks, screens, pergolas, 1) Soil wetting agents applied to lawn in early
etc, to shelter the house and garden beds. summer and again in mid summer will ensure
• Less lawn water penetrates to the root zone. Water
repellent garden beds will also benefit from an
Reduce the size of lawn areas. Native ground application of soil wetter.
covers are attractive and use very little water
once established. 2) Water saving granules added to pots and
hanging baskets will create a water reservoir
• Plant zones for dry days.
Group plants with similar water requirements 3) Seasol is a great tonic when planting, and for
together, and keep planted areas dense to plants which are in need of a little extra care.
maximise efficiency and shelter individual
plants. • Choose hardy Australian natives plants
To add some colour to your waterwise garden,
• Drought hardy plants plant colourful and hardy native plants - straw
Choose plants which have low water needs. flowers, rock daisies, native daphne, native
Australian plants, especially local ones, are rosemary, native fuchsia, egg and bacon,
well adapted to harsh conditions, and can grevilleas and dwarf bottlebrush. Hybrid
survive on much less water once established. kangaroo paws, once established, will flower
Plants from dry areas of the world such as all through summer with very little water
South Africa and the Mediterranean are also and brighten up any summer garden. Sturt
drought hardy. desert peas make a brilliant show and may
• Improve the soil be purchased from garden centres as seed or
Always prepare the soil before planting, by seedlings in late November.
digging in soil improver or well rotted compost.
This will ensure precious water is held around
the roots for longer. For more information, the Water Corporation
has released a comprehensive booklet “The
• Mulch, mulch, mulch Waterwise Gardening Guide”, by John Colwill,
Mulch everywhere with a coarse mulch such as which is available at garden centres and
aged chipped tree prunings. irrigation outlets.
155 Watsonia Road, Zanthorrea Nursery Ph: (08) 9454 6260
Maida Vale, WA 6057 http://www.zanthorrea.com Fax: (08) 9454 4540