Garden Galleries

A primary target of watersaver design is the 20th-century lawn. Reducing the square footage dedicated to watered turfgrass is considered one of the quickest means to significantly reducing a family's water use in San Antonio.

The Office of Historic Preservation's 2012 guidelines state that historic structures should remain the visual focus of landscapes, and to this end, suggest that 50 percent of existing lawns be retained in landscape re-designs for historic districts.

After considering converting their sprinklers to drip, the owners chose to remove the entire sprinkler system, taking advantage of SAWS' Conservation irrigation rebate to do so.

Without regular maintenance, many typical watersaver plantings can grow large enough to obstruct views of architecture. In this example, a garden of rosemary and olive has been sited in a side yard.

In a recent landscape installation for Monte Vista, Austin-based designer Scott Ogden proposed a solution which preserved the existing streetscape, the view of an 1890s Greek Revival home, and even the lawn -- while still managing to do away with irrigation.

Instead of irrigated turf, plugs of Texas sedge were used to provide a lush turflike texture in keeping with the historic neighborhood -- pleasing both neighbors and the HDRC review.

In keeping with the neighborhood, the new planting respects the site's open, formal plan. Needle palm and Formosan palm are a nod to the Greek revival architecture. Meyer lemons are sited to screen a driveway, with ginger and tradescantia being laid out in groupings around the big oak trees.

Designer Scott Ogden selected lush, low-growing watersaver plantings appropriate to clay soil, deeply shaded by live oaks -- similar to many historic neighborhoods in central San Antonio. Here, plugs of 'Webberville' Texas Sedge, tradescantia and ginger are ready for planting.

Instead of irrigated turf, plugs of Texas sedge were used to provide a lush turflike texture in keeping with the historic neighborhood -- pleasing both neighbors and the HDRC review.

The landscape preserves the neighborhood streetscape, but thanks to careful plant selection it manages to meet design requirements without relying on an in-ground sprinkler system.

One of the sprinkler valves being removed in the rear yard.

Current historic design guidelines suggest watersaver landscaping along driveways, walkways, fences, and in rear yards. But where they specify a clear view of the historic structure from the street, converting lawn to landscaping can be a challenge.