A Guide To Desert Landscaping: Also Known as Xeriscaping

Perhaps when you think of the desert, they only think of baking hot days, cacti, and arid conditions. In truth, many deserts are located in high terrain and the hottest days can actually turn into very cold nights. Many deserts also experience cold winters that can include snow, and desert landscaping often reflects this.

Desert Landscaping: Heat And Cold

Because the desert can exhibit such a range of temperatures, desert landscaping needs to be hardy enough to tolerate both heat and cold. Many coniferous trees and shrubs can thrive in high terrain deserts, because they withstand the heat and tolerate cold. Surprisingly, many cactus plants, usually thought of as hot climate plants, are also cold hardy. Using desert friendly plants is so great because not only will these plants do well in hot sun they will also be able to tolerate poor soil quality which is so often found in deserts.

Desert Landscaping: Water With Care

You could spend money to install irrigation, but it is much simpler for your desert landscaping plan to simply utilize plants that will thrive naturally in your local conditions. If you choose plants that are native to your area, irrigation shouldn't be necessary.

However, if you want to grow other flowering plants, vegetables, or other greenery that doesn't normally grow in the desert, you need to make sure that you provide a source of water for your landscaping. Before you design your desert yard, be sure to inquire with your local authorities if there are watering restrictions in your city or county. Once you have established how much water you can budget for your yard each month, make a watering plan. Are you going to water by hand? The simplest way to water your garden is with a timed sprinkler system. If you plant grass set your timer to go off early in the morning, so that the water can absorb into the ground before the sun rises and causes it to evaporate. If you use a drip irrigation system to water your shrubs and ground covers and you will have minimal waste.

Rocks and Sand

Another way to design your desert landscape is to use rocks and sands. You could compose sand dunes and rocky paths in places that you would normally grow a lawn. Most of the time, deserts do not have much grass because there isn't enough rainfall to sustain it. An artistic use of inorganic elements can help complete your desert landscaping.