Gardening in an arid climate has its drawbacks and its benefits. Up until a few years ago, I did whatever possible to maintain a lush lawn, and a large lush garden. The problem was that because those plants needed to much water, I always found they did not perform as well as they do in the amazing photos you all post. I still gaze in awe at the woodland type gardens filled with Hostas, ferns and begonias.

So after much debate, I decided to begin ripping out my lawn, piece by piece. This is one of the first sections that I transformed in early 2010. This was done in the wet season, so my best bet is probably around late January 2010, judging by the flowering apricot tree far in the background.

{{gwi:56557}}

And here is that same shot as it appeared at the peak of the dry season in early November of this year. There are still some water loving plants that refuse to give into drought. The brugmansia and canna, if you can spot them, are still there from before.

{{gwi:56558}}

I've gotten so hooked with this look that I've already gotten rid of ALL of the remaining lawn. The best part of it all is the maintenance is minimal, and i water once every two weeks or so. Anyway, I hope this helps anyone out there who might be strugling with the same dilemma I was.