Story Title: Building a Water Saving Garden
Episode: Summer Garden Special
Date: January 15th 2010
Presenter: Trevor Cochrane

With more than 50% of our domestic water supply used in our gardens and the last year being the second hottest ever on record, Western Australians obligation to save water has never been more important. Build your own waterwise garden with ground-breaking waterwise expertise.

Trevor’s Tips

• Lawn is an important part of any garden but when you have a huge area and cannot maintain it; it’s time to look for alternatives that won’t use up so much water.
• Don’t plant gardens in the middle of summer. The plants will require huge volumes of water to sustain them. In WA we should be waiting until April or ideally early may and then plant out to let the early winter rains help your plants establish a root system that will be mature enough to survive the hottest days next summer.
• The next thing is the soil. Get the best organic soil conditioner. Trevor uses Biowise in his garden.
• When planting use a planting gel. These materials absorb moisture and hold it around the roots cooling the soil and it’s believed they release moisture back to the roots over weeks after the last watering. We are always recommending that you apply a seaweed tonic like Seasol when planting. Its known they reduce transplant shock and help the plant develop a sturdy strong root system. Seasol is now available in the planting gel mix.
• Using plants that originate from similar climates to ours is always wise. Try planting Protea’s and other hardy native species. Once established, they require very little additional water in summer.
• Using trees to create a barrier around your garden will reduce the influence of the drying effect that winds can have on your garden. Trevor has planted a few hundred since moving in to create what will be in a few years a complete screen. He estimates that this act alone will reduce his gardens water demand and consumption by 50%.

Save 6
As part of the Water Corporation’s 50-year ‘Water Forever’ plan, they’re asking every household in WA to save at least six standard (10L) buckets of water each day.

This is very easy to achieve. And if everyone does their bit, in just one year we’ll save around a third of Mundaring Weir.

Save 6 Tips

Save 6 in the house…

• Take shorter showers
• Catch the cold water, too
• Turn off the tap when brushing your teeth
• Fix leaking taps and toilets
• Do a full wash
• Use a half-flush when you can

Save 6 in the garden …

• Reduce your sprinkler time

• Mulch, mulch, mulch
• Choose a water efficient lawn
• Give pressure washers a miss
• Wash your car with a bucket
• Install a pool cover

For lots of tips to start saving six in your home and garden, visit www.Save6.com.au today.

Contact
The Water Corporation
Head Office
629 Newcastle Street
Leederville  WA  6007
Phone: (08) 9420 2420
Contact us

www.watercorporation.com.au