Your Better Yard

Water-Saving Landscapes to Fit Your Lifestyle

Are you looking to save water while maintaining a beautiful landscape? Whether you are a master gardener or have little patience for lawncare, you can make your yard more attractive and functional while also saving water. Enhance your landscapes with water-saving techniques and technologies that fit your lifestyle and yard type.

Check out the eight different landscape types below to see which one might match your yard and lifestyle. Once you have found your better yard, learn how you can upgrade your landscape and save water with WaterSense labeled product and smart practices.

Backyard Beauty

Are you a master gardener with a variety of annuals, perennials, and vegetables in your yard? Is your landscape lush, and do you require efficient irrigation performance in a variety of climates? If you’re going for Backyard Beauty, consider these tips for your better yard:

Plant flowers that are native to your region and don’t require much watering beyond normal rainfall.
Group plants in hydrozones by watering needs.
Consider installing a micro-irrigation system that delivers water slowly and over a longer period of time.
Use a WaterSense labeled weather-based irrigation controller that will tailor your landscapes watering schedule based on local weather and landscape conditions.
Sign up for a free sprinkler evaluation to get a licensed irrigator to do an audit of your irrigation system to help you find ways to improve efficiency.
Attend one our Learn and Grow classes to learn about water efficient gardening.
Install a rain barrel to supplement irrigation with captured water. Plants like rain water more than tap water anyway!

Dog Digging Dilemma

Are you a tech-savvy pet owner who thinks your phone isn’t the only thing that should be smart? Do you want flower beds kept safe from digging paws? Is your irrigation system controlled with a clock timer? Solve your Dog Digging Dilemma with your better yard:

Replace some of your turf with hardy plants that can withstand pets.
If you are a technology lover, install a WaterSense labeled weather-based irrigation controller that can connect to your smartphone and water only when needed.
Conduct a sprinkler spruce-up every spring to find leaks and broken components.
- Learn how to do a system evaluation and how to fix your own leaks by attending one of our DIY Sprinkler Repair classes or watching one of our DIY Sprinkler videos.
- Sign up here for a free sprinkler evaluation by a licensed irrigator.
If you need to hire someone to make repairs or modifications to your sprinkler system:
- Enlist a local Green Professional who has been trained in water efficient landscaping techniques.
- Enlist a professional irrigation auditor certified by a WaterSense labeled program to help.
Replace any broken spray sprinkler bodies with WaterSense labeled models.

Playdate Priorities

Does your yard have an in-ground sprinkler system, and your home have high water pressure? Is your yard packed with playground equipment and kids over for playdates, leaving little free time? Focus on your Playdate Priorities instead of lawn maintenance with your better yard:

Replace turf with mulch in high-traffic play areas.
Incorporate low-watering-using plants to reduce maintenance and irrigation needs.
If high water pressure is an issue, install WaterSense labeled spray sprinkler bodies that reduce misting and uneven coverage.
Install a WaterSense labeled weather-based irrigation controller to do the thinking for you in terms of when and how much to water.
Sign up for free weekly watering advice custom to your location to know exactly how much to water.

Landscape Luxury

Do you love to entertain outdoors, but also like to travel and leave the lawn maintenance to someone else? Are you in the market for a landscape or irrigation system redesign? Your better yard can have Landscape Luxury and use less water:

Consider replacing a portion of your turf with a permeable hard surface.
Hire a local Green Professional who has been trained in water efficient landscaping techniques.
Organize plants in hydrozones by watering needs.
Install a micro-irrigation system that delivers water right to the roots and reduces evaporation and runoff.
- Learn how to convert your system to drip by attending one of our DIY Drip Irrigation classes or watching one of our DIY Drip Irrigation videos.
Incorporate WaterSense labeled spray sprinkler bodies and a weather-based irrigation controller into your new system.
Sign up for free weekly watering advice custom to your location to know exactly how much to water.

Family Fun

Is your lawn the envy of the neighborhood? Are you picky about what you plant and when to water? Do you also like to practice sports with the kids in the backyard? Focus on Family Fun and not on lawn care in your better yard:

Install WaterSense labeled spray sprinkler bodies to ensure even coverage even under high water pressure.
Sign up for free weekly watering advice custom to your location to know exactly how much to water.
Conduct a sprinkler spruce-up every spring to find leaks and broken components.
- Learn how to do a system evaluation and how to fix your own leaks by attending one of our DIY Sprinkler Repair classes or watching one of our DIY Sprinkler videos.
- Sign up here for a free sprinkler evaluation by a licensed irrigator.
If you need to hire someone to make repairs or modifications to your sprinkler system:
- Enlist a local Green Professional who has been trained in water efficient landscaping techniques.
- Enlist a professional irrigation auditor certified by a WaterSense labeled program to help.

Low-Maintenance Living

Are you a busy working parent who wants to spend more time with the kids than your lawn? Instead of an in-ground sprinkler system, do you water with a hose hooked up to a sprinkler? Stop mowing and start Low-Maintenance Living with your better yard:

Replace some turf with drought-tolerant plants native to your region.
Place plants in hydrozones based on their watering needs.
Consider some type of drip irrigation technology, such as a soaker hose.
- Learn how to convert your system to drip by attending one of our DIY Drip Irrigation classes or watching one of our DIY Drip Irrigation videos.
Water smarter by following water-wise tips, such as avoiding mid-day sun.

Urban Oasis

Are you a city-dweller with little outdoor space and a desire to make the world a better place? Do you grow your own vegetables and flowers in your backyard or balcony? Are you the do-it-yourself type, or at least willing to learn by watching a YouTube video? Turn your Urban Oasis into your better yard:

Plant drought-tolerant flowers that are native to your region and that will require little supplemental watering beyond normal rainfall.
Plant flowers in hydrozones based on their watering requirements.
Add mulch around plants to reduce evaporation and maintain healthy soil.
Install drip irrigation hooked to a hose-bib with a soil moisture sensor or weather-based irrigation controller.
- Learn how to convert your system to drip by attending one of our DIY Drip Irrigation classes or watching one of our DIY Drip Irrigation videos.

Community Plot

Are you an avid community gardener or teaching kids how to plant and grow food? Is the garden next to a school or building with plenty of precipitation? Are you building raised beds to grow flowers and vegetables? Turn a Community Plot into your better yard:

Fill the garden with plants that are native to the region.
Arrange beds in hydrozones to simplify watering.
Teach kids about water conservation by using a rain barrel to collect water from a nearby roof to use for irrigation. Keep a look out for future DIY Rainwater Harvesting classes and rain barrel sales.
Install a drip irrigation system to deliver water slowly and over a longer period of time.
- Learn how to convert your system to drip by attending one of our DIY Drip Irrigation classes or watching one of our DIY Drip Irrigation videos.

Learn more about saving water while creating your better yard; check out additional resources:

WaterSense Water-Smart Landscapes guide.
List of native plants for Tarrant County.
WaterSense Landscape walkthrough checklist.
Find even more water conservation tips at WaterIsAwesome.com.