Watering Ban What to do

[Olentangy]

My city here in suburban KC has issued a full outdoor watering ban. Temps have been 95-100 for 2 weeks, and we have had about 1 inch of rain for the past two months.

I have been watering my lawn, and it was doing OK until Thursday, when it hit 107. I watered then, and now I cannot water anything for the forseeable future.

What type of shrubs/trees should I plant if I have to replace them that would be able to survive this extreme climate, if it persists year after year? We seem to be getting hotter and dryer in the summers, and I want to have landscaping that needs minimal watering. Unfortunately, desert foliage "cacti etc.. will not work here as we have winters!

What can I do?

[J. Lane]

You could do a web search on xeriscape gardening, phone your local agricultural center to find out what native plants live in your area, or find out if any parks in your area have a xeriscape garden and go visit it to note the plants and shrubs they use.

[Sed5555]

See:

[Frogleg]

Replace as much grass area as possible with shrubs and other (native is best) plantings. Consult your local state extension service, etc., etc. Many lawn grasses are *extremely* thirsty. There may be some more drought-tolerant ones you could establish without running afoul of the Weed Police. Mow your grass infrequently and high to give it some chance of survival.

[dkat]

The problem with global warming is that you are getting more extremes in weather patterns so you just can't count on using "native" plants that once would have survived in our local climates. It is predicted that there are going to be a lot of plants and animals becoming extinct because this climate change is happening much to quickly for anything to adapt and the man made plants we now have could not survive on their own in any case. I would think you would have to have plants that easily go in and out of dormancy during both winter and summer for where you are. Certain ornamental grasses would do well. Silver leafed plants tend to cope better with lack of water (sage, lavender, Mediterranean plants, prairie plants, etc.). You also will have to have plants that can take the extreme cold spells that you must be having as well. You would think someone would be considering this issue by now....

Well they are (after doing a search) but it's in England and not here... Apparently the Bush Administration's policy of "adapting" to global warming is lacking in telling us how.

"What gardeners can do now