The City of Los Angeles instituted a new water use ordinance last month in an effort to encourage water conservation. The new ordinance expands restrictions and increases penalties for excessive use. (For more information you can see Mayor Villaraigosa’s press release here.) The entire state of California is in a drought and water conservation should be important to all of us. Did you know that as much as 50% of your water use occurs outdoors? That’s significant! So what can we do to reduce our water usage you ask. Below I’ve listed for you, in no particular order, my top 10 water conservation tips for landscapes.

1. Add mulch to planter beds. Mulch helps to retain moisture and can reduce watering requirements.
2. Aerate turf areas. Aerating can improve drainage and reduce compaction which will help the soil absorb water better and reduce runoff.
3. Maintain your irrigation system. Broken heads and lines can be a major source of wasted water.
4. Adjust controllers often. Adjust your controllers often to compensate for changes in the weather.
5. Install smart controllers. Today’s higher end controllers have many water saving features including the ability to add rain shut offs, moisture sensors, and ET sensors.
6. Reduce turf areas. Turf is one of the highest users of water. Reducing the amount of turf in the landscape will in turn reduce your water consumption.
7. Use plants with low water requirements. Use plants that are adapted to the area and require less water in your landscapes.
8. Install low-volume type irrigation systems. Use drip irrigation or bubblers where possible.
9. Retrofit existing spray-head nozzles with new multi-stream rotor nozzles. Nozzles such as the MP Rotator use up to 30% less water and irrigate more evenly.
10. Water early in the morning. Watering earlier in the morning helps to reduce evaporation.