Are you tired of spending summer weekends on yard work or watching your water bill climb? Xeriscaping is a practical way to cut water use, reduce routine maintenance, and still have a yard with texture and colour. Below is a quick primer on what xeriscaping is, how to do it, and where our materials fit.
What is Xeriscaping?
Xeriscaping (sometimes called water-wise landscaping) uses thoughtful design, water-efficient plants, efficient irrigation, mulch, and smart maintenance to reduce or even eliminate regular irrigation. It isn’t “zeroscaping.” A rock-only yard without plants is low on biodiversity and can get hot. Xeriscaping keeps plants, but chooses ones that suit the local climate and groups them by water needs to minimise losses from evaporation and runoff. See the seven widely accepted principles of xeriscape design.
Pros & Cons
Xeriscaping is relatively low maintenance because it doesn’t require much mowing, watering, weeding, and fertilizing. Converting from traditional turf to xeriscape has been shown to reduce total household water use by about 30% on average in utility studies. As a result, it is more cost-effective, which means you’ll have more time and money to spend on the things you love. Xeriscaping also allows for more colours and room for creativity compared with standard grass lawns. A bonus is that it creates less yard waste and fertilizer run-off and is more environmentally friendly.
On the other hand, low maintenance doesn’t mean no maintenance. You’ll still weed, prune, and occasionally water through dry spells. Additionally, xeriscaping does reduce lawn area, which is more culturally associated with prosperity and community. Some neighbourhoods do have rules regarding front-yard appearance, so check local guidance before beginning your xeriscaping project.
How to Xeriscape Your Yard?
The best way to achieve your creative design is to look for inspiration on Internet. Chances are you’ll have to adjust your plant selection to suit your local climate, but it’s still a good place to start. After gathering your ideas, you can choose to xeriscape yourself or hire a landscaper depending on your landscaping skill. If you decide to DIY, here are some of the basic steps of xeriscaping:
Design The Plan
Sketch your site and note sun, shade, wind, slopes, and where water naturally flows. Group plants with similar water needs into “hydrozones” so each zone gets just the water it needs. Grouping by water use is called hydrozoning. Prairie winds and full sun can be intense. Plan windbreaks, think about snow storage, and make sure spring meltwater drains away from your foundation and toward areas that can use it. Many municipalities regulate lot grading.
Limit Turf To Where It’s Used
Keep lawn where you sit, play, or want a green look. Convert the rest to planting beds, groundcovers, or permeable pathways. Smaller lawn areas mean less mowing, fertilizing, and watering. If you keep lawn, consider drought-tolerant cool-season mixes. Cities on the Prairies often recommend fescues and wheatgrasses in dryland blends.
Prepare Soil And Manage Drainage
Before planting, loosen compacted soils and add compost where needed. Keep finished grades sloping away from the house. Avoid burying trunks or siding. Local bylaws may set rules for swales and downspout discharge, so check yours.
Choose Climate-Appropriate Plants
Pick plants that match your sun, soil, and moisture, then place them where they’ll thrive with minimal help. Use your regional plant hardiness zone as a starting point and lean on locally adapted or native species for staying power. Most of Saskatchewan is Zone 2 to 3, depending on location. Prairie natives and prairie-proven perennials and grasses tend to establish well and need less supplemental water once rooted. For low-maintenance beds, favour clump-forming plants and avoid aggressive spreaders that run by stolons or rhizomes, since they creep into paths and need frequent edging.
Irrigate Efficiently
New plants need regular watering until established. After that, water deeply and less often. Drip lines or soaker hoses deliver water at the roots and reduce evaporation compared to spray heads. Weather-based or soil-moisture-based controllers can automate smart scheduling, especially on larger systems. For those in Saskatchewan, time irrigation for early morning during summer heat. Windy afternoons increase drift and evaporation, so avoid them if you can.
Mulch To Save Water And Suppress Weeds
Aim for 2–4 inches of mulch in planting beds. Thicker layers can mat and reduce oxygen and water getting into the soil. Keep mulch a few centimetres back from trunks and stems. Organic mulches help moderate soil temperatures and add organic matter over time. Rock mulch is very low maintenance and suits drought-tolerant plantings, though it can warm up beds in full sun.
Maintain, But Keep It Simple
Weed a little and often, top up mulch when it thins, prune for plant health, and adjust irrigation as plants mature. Xeriscapes are lower maintenance, not maintenance-free. In colder climate, watch for winter desiccation on evergreens in exposed sites and water deeply before freeze-up in dry autumns if the soil is still workable.
Summary
Don’t waste your summer doing tedious yard work. Xeriscaping can save time and money in the long run. It is also an opportunity to make your home stand out. Here at Serbu Sand & Gravel, we provide a wide variety of landscaping materials such as rocks, and topsoil to help you landscape your yard. Both Classic Landscaping in White City and Owens Landscaping in Regina carry our aggregates. If you need to do any site prep, stump removal, or demolition of previous yard scape, we also offer bobcat services. We work on both residential and commercial projects.
