What is Xeriscaping?

Xeriscaping (pronounced “zeer-i-scaping”) is landscaping that is designed to reduce the overall need for any supplemental water from irrigation. These types of practices aren’t really new, however, thanks to increasing drought seasons throughout portions of the state of Texas, they are becoming much more widespread due to local water restrictions and other benefits of xeriscaping in Texas.

On top of lowering water usage, another benefit of xeriscaping will be particularly attractive to people who don’t want to spend a lot of time taking care of their landscaping. Because xeriscaping focuses on reducing the overall need for supplemental watering, this means you’ll want to pick plants that require very little water and are drought resistant. Plants that match this profile are typically sturdy and hearty plants, meaning they don’t require a great deal of maintenance to keep them looking their best. Xeriscaping is almost a “set it and forget it” form of landscaping!

Rather than having large amounts of grass and water hungry plants around your home and patio that need regular trimming, fertilizing, and watering, xeriscaping offers an opportunity to explore different types of plants that don’t require a lot of water or maintenance. This means you’ll spend way more time enjoying your landscaping than taking care of it! The process of converting your landscaping to xeriscaping costs a lot less to maintain opposed to more traditional or standard landscaping that involves the same amount of square footage with lawn and shrubs.

Some of the most common benefits of utilizing xeriscaping:

• Help the environment but using less water and promoting local water conservation
• Lower the amount you pay on monthly utility bills
• Spend less time on landscaping maintenance, and lowering costs for maintenance services

If you’re new to the idea of xeriscaping (welcome, and we hope you’ve learned some interesting facts so far!) you may not be familiar with the types of plants that are commonly used in the xeriscaping process. Xeriscaping is ideal for areas that are trying to conserve water, or are in need of drought-tolerant landscaping. Using plants whose growth and maintenance requirements work well with the local climate, and the types of plants that can be used are dependent on climate. Xeriscaping is also a great option if your property resides on sandy soil or steep slopes that could make traditional landscaping a hassle.

We have some of the most popular types of native and adaptable xeriscaping plants listed below for you to research and make note of for you next xeriscaping in Texas project!

• Bat-Faced Cuphea
• Black-Eyed Susan
• Desert Willow
• Gulf Muhly
• Purple Heart
• Red Yucca
• Sedum
• Texas Sage
• Texas Redbud
• Trailing Lantana
• Agave
• Cacti
• Succulents
• Oak trees

Thank you for reading B&B Landscaping & Masonry’s blog. We’re happy to have helped you learn more about xeriscaping in Texas. Give us a call and we would be happy to help you plan your next xeriscaped landscaping project.