While Having A Full Fledged Garden Is Rewarding And Enjoyable, Lots Ofpeople Simply Dont Have The Time That Is Required To Maintain It. Whetheryou Have Too Much Going On At Work Or Too Many Kids To Take Care Of, Youshould Never Try To Operate A Garden If You Dont Think You Can Handle It.For Those People Who Are Just Too Busy For A Normal Garden, I Wouldsuggest A Somewhat Recent Method Of Gardening Known As Xeriscaping. Thisminimal Yet Stylish Theory First Emerged In Colorado When Water Levelswere At An All Time Low. It Is A Great Method Of Having A Great Lookingyard Or Garden, Without Having To Maintain It Or Water It Very Often Atall.Here In Colorado, Many Places Are Offering Free Xeriscaping Lessons Inorder To Encourage The Conservation Of Water. If Your Area Is Undergoing Adrought, You Should Check With The Water Suppliers And See If They Areoffering Lessons. If You Attend Those, You Will Be Able To Get Advicespecific To Your Region (IE Types Of Plants To Grow, How Much To Waterthem, Etc).To Some, The Name Xeriscaping Conjures The Image Of A Yard That Consistsof A Giant Rock Bed. However, This Is Known As Zero Scaping, And It Is Aconsiderably Different Concept. It Focuses On Reducing Your Yard Tonothing That Requires Any Maintenance Whatsoever. Unfortunately This Isusually Just Rocks. But This Shouldnt Be Your Goal. While Keepingmaintenance At A Minimum, It Is Still Possibly To Retain A Nice Lookingyard That Wont Attract The Negative Attention Of Everyone Who Passes By.This Might Sound Like It Would Be Hard To Implement Without Making Youryard Into A Hideous Mess, But This Is Not So At All. The Theory Basicallyinvolves Choosing Plants Which Are Low Maintenance To Begin With, Thenputting Them Each In Environments That Are Ideal. It Is Usually Applied Byfiguring Out What Side Of The House To Place It On To Get The Best Amountof Shade, And Figuring Out How To Group It With Plants With Similar Waterneeds.To Get Started In Your Xeriscaping Renovation, You First Need To Pick Outall The Plants You Will Be Using. They Should For The Most Part Require Alow Amount Of Water. This Doesnt Mean You Can Only Grow Cactuses In Youryard. Just Cut Back On The Really Thirsty Plants That You Have To Waterevery Day To Keep Alive. Youll Want To Stick With Local Plants For Themost Part, And Dont Go With Anything Too Exotic As These Generallyrequire Larger Amounts Of Water.The Second Most Important Principle Of Xeriscaping Is Placing The Plantsin Ideal Areas. If You Place Them All Together With Plants That Requireessentially The Same Amount Of Water, Then You Will End Up Saving Lots Ofwater. Also Place The Plants In Areas Where They Will Be Protected Fromwind Or Excessive Sun, Depending On The Needs Of The Plants. Xeriscapingis Almost The Same Thing As Microclimating, Just With More Of A Focus Onadaptation To Harsh Conditions Rather Than Avoiding Them. So If It Soundsgood To You And Youre Looking To Save Time And Water By Renovating Yourgarden, You Should Look For Xeriscaping Lessons.PPPPP(Word Count 554)
