8 Drought-Sensitive Ways to Start a Garden

8 Drought-Sensitive Ways to Start a Garden

Drought or near-drought conditions can be a challenge for gardeners, but starting a new garden during a drought can be a good choice. Landscape pros offer advice on how to add plantings while saving water. Debbie Gliksman of Urban Oasis Landscape Design in Los Angeles encourages homeowners to do some planting to avoid having just a patch of dirt, and Steve Ritchey of Seed Studio Landscape Design advises homeowners to start a garden when they are ready. If remodeling an existing garden, consider keeping what you have in place rather than tearing it out. This will help keep the ground covered, keep the dust down and keep the area more weed-free when you are able to seed or plant new plants.
When creating a healthy garden, it is important to understand your native soil and its needs. Organic fertilizers and organic soil amendments can improve soil conditions, but whether to use them or not will depend on the plants you're adding. Van Zandt doesn't like to add a lot of amendments during planting in Utah's heavy clay soil, and Ritchey recommends holding off planting trees until later in the year. To lengthen your planting schedule, focus first on your top ornamental priorities for foundation plants, perennials and shrubs and trees.