Need help replacing dying front lawn with drought tolerant beauties

12 years ago

We are in Denver, Colorado. Our front yard faces west with no shade. The water restrictions we have had for the past few years with the hot summer afternoon sun are slowly killing the lawn and giving way to lots of weed.

Frankly, we are losing the battle of keeping our lawn green and want to go with drought tolerant plants since we cannot water more than twice a week with 15 minutes per zone restrictions. We also have a slope that makes runoff common and mowing a pain. While it was not a problem with the lawn, colorful plants have been difficult to maintain because of the rabbits in our yard and the entire neighborhood that no fence has been able to keep out since they manage to dig and slide under the fences.

So, we are looking for what feels like the impossible: plants that are drought tolerant, colorful, rabbit-proof, and hopefully not a maintenance nightmare. We would love ideas, no matter how daring.

Featured Answer

saratogaswizzlestick

12 years ago

Go to the botanical garden in Steamboat Springs it is gorgeous and you will get fantastic ideas.

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Comments (13)

PRO
garden design online
12 years ago
last modified: 12 years ago
alces,yucca ...work
5280denver thanked garden design online
rinked
12 years ago
Look for ground covering drought tolerant plant species. I'd also look for a local garden designer, who knows the specs needed for your area. You could turn it into a beautiful garden, either with lots of plants or lots of stone.

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Jessica Mack
12 years ago
Plants with silver leaves repel most animals. I tried to post a photo, but my Kindle is not cooperating. Most of the silver leafed plants are pretty drought tolerant.
5280denver thanked Jessica Mack
Jessica Mack
12 years ago
https://www.houzz.com/magazine/6-stunning-silver-leaf-plants-stsetivw-vs~2182673
5280denver thanked Jessica Mack
hmbcorbs74
12 years ago
I'm not sure how far along you are on your project, but I am dealing with a similar problem in CA. I am planning to replace my lawn with a CA native fescue. It grows 8 to 12 inches max, and only needs mowing like 2 times a year. During the summer, it needs to be watered once a month. It's also very inexpensive to seed. My front lawn area is about 4000 square feet and it will cost be just under $1000 to put in new sprinklers, prepare and seed.
PRO
Revery
11 years ago
Enviroturf, a low water sod you can have a contractor replace your lawn with this or something similar. You'll be ahead of the curve and pleased to successfully be part of the important water conservation movement here! Also, I personally have many answers to the drought tolerant and rabbit proof beautiful plants question. Visit the Denver Botanic Garden's Water Smart display, in my opinion the prettiest garden there, and it receives zero supplemental water beyond rain and snow.

Rebecca Marquardt
Landscape architect in Westminster
frances a
11 years ago
hi hmbcorbs74 - just curious as to what type of fescue you used and what your results were. i'm in california and am replacing our traditional lawn. i'm considering a lot of options right now and would love to hear some 'real world' results. thanks.
hmbcorbs74
11 years ago
Hi Frances- Since my post, I deviated slightly from my original intent to put in a CA native fescue. I did however replace my lawn with a drought tolerant Fescue certified by TWCA, Turfgrass Water Conservation Alliance (http://www.tgwca.org/qualified-products/). The product I used was called AquaWise and can be purchased at Pacific Coast Seeds in Livermore, CA. I planted the seed October 30th last year, and while I was highly skeptical it would turn out, my lawn looks as if I had planted sod. I have had issues with a couple of spots near roots, and where I brought in topsoil to fill (I do not recommend topsoil, if you can avoid it do so). Additionally, I did not spray Roundup or do anything for weeds prior to planting, so this spring I did battle clover, and the spring grasses. So far on the water conservation, I have my controller programmed to put down a maximum of 1.28 inches per week Peak (July and August), which is 30% less than UC Davis recommends the Sacramento region needs. The cost of the grass is about $75/bag which will seed 5,000 sq ft. If you are in a coastal region, I would recommend using a Ryegrass over Fescue (PCS sells an AquaWise blend of this as well). I can post some pictures tomorrow.

Drought Tolerant Fescue

Turf Grass Water Conservation Alliance

UC Davis Watering Guidelines
frances a
11 years ago
last modified: 11 years ago
hi hmbcorbs74- thanks for the info. we're about 9 miles from the coast (usda zone 10a). summers can hit triple digits; winters generally don't get below 35º at night. on occasion we sometimes hit freezing.

my husband and i went to several different nurseries today to check out all of the options that were on our list. we were able to cross a number of them off. sheep fescue remains on the list, but i'm concerned that it may fill in too slowly. i also read about california native bentgrass (agrostis pallens) which i think will fit all of our criteria: drought-tolerant, grows in sun and partial shade, and good with traffic (we have dogs). i need to do a little more research, but feel like i'm closing in.

thanks again for all the links. i'll definitely check them out.
Tai M
11 years ago
Consult your local native plant society or go to the natives section of your local nursery. Native plants are tough, beautiful, low-maintenance, and require little to no additional water after they are established. Also, unlike turf, they will attract and support birds, bees and butterflies.
Harpspiel
11 years ago
Russian Sage is a lovely, long blooming shrub that is everywhere here in New Mexico. It is theoretically not appealing to rabbits. You might want to check that it is not a weed in Denver, where it would probably get a lot more water than it does around here.

There are some other suggestions here, all should be quite drought tolerant:
http://www.highcountrygardens.com/gardening/rabbit-resistant-garden/

For more suggestions, look up the term xeriscaping or xeric plants, it's a term generally used in the southwest for extremely drought tolerant landscaping.
PRO
Eco Minded Solutions
11 years ago

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A xeriscape is one of the most effective drought tolerant landscapes.