Happy Earth Day!

Here is what I was doing on the very first Earth Day. Click on the photos to enlarge.

Wake Up your Sprinkler System

Before you fire up your irrigation system for the season, have a licensed irrigator examine it for leaks and other maintenance issues.

To upgrade the performance of your system and to save water, consider some of these changes and modifications:

Convert shrub areas to high performance drip irrigation. Properly installed inline drip tubing can save water and give a higher level of water distribution uniformity.


Install a Rain and Freeze sensor. This will shut down your irrigation system during a rain or freeze event.

Upgrade to an E/T "Smart Controller". These controllers can adjust watering based on current weather conditions and save water.

Rainwater Harvesting

Texas’ water supply planning process has identified that surface and groundwater supplies will not be able to meet future water demand. Water conservation and development of alternative water supplies is necessary to meet our growing demand for fresh water.

Rainwater harvesting is an innovative alternative water supply approach anyone can use. Rainwater harvesting captures, diverts, and stores rainwater for later use. Captured rainwater is often used in landscaping, because the water is free of salts and other harmful minerals and does not have to be treated. It is also useful in attracting and providing water for wildlife.

Implementing rainwater harvesting techniques directly benefits our state by reducing demand on the water supply, and reducing run-off, erosion, and contamination of surface water.

In many communities, 30 to 50 percent of the total water is used for landscape irrigation. Capturing rainwater for use in the landscape makes efficient use of a valuable resource, reducing water bills and reducing demand on water supply.

Rainwater harvesting can also help to prevent flooding and erosion, turning stormwater problems into water supply assets by slowing runoff and allowing it to soak into the ground. Reducing run-off also helps to reduce the contamination of surface water with sediments, fertilizers, and pesticides in rainfall run-off.

Allen, Tx Swimming Pool Landscape

The owners of this Allen, Texas residence contacted Garrison Gardens to explore some landscape design ideas and develop a plan that could be completed in phases. This property featured some unique challenges being situated on a corner lot with an alley on the east side. The easement to the back of the property limited the depth of the planting beds.

One of the first needs discussed was some shade and screening along the west fence line. We designed a mixed tree line consisting of Red Oak and Crape Myrtle, with a planted bed underneath. The initial phase addressed the trees with the landscape bed designated to a later phase. The plantings around the swimming pool were also assigned to the initial installation. We selected shrubs and ornamental trees that would thrive in the intense west sun. Some of the plant material selected included Knock Out Rose, Silverado Texas Sage, Indian Hawthorn, Vitex, and Salvia.

We also worked on phase one for the front yard and that will be shown in a later post.