Comment by svec | Hacker News Reader

Comment by svec | Hacker News Reader

Also look into xeriscaping (frequently pronounced "zero-scaping"): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xeriscaping

It's "landscaping and gardening that reduces or eliminates the need for supplemental water from irrigation," frequently with native species.

We xeriscaped much of our yard in Austin, Texas, and if it can work in Texas, then it can work anywhere. My wife took great care to make sure many of the plants were attractive to wildlife (bees, butterflies, hummingbirds) which was an added bonus. (Did you know that hummingbirds are crazy aggressive and territorial? They are!)

"Native plants" doesn't just mean ugly scrub brush either: plenty of beautiful plants grow natively where you are - but you'll probably have to look further than Home Depot to find them.

Yeah, hummingbirds are super aggressive. It is kind of cute and kind of scary at the same time. A territorial hummingbird will think nothing of dive-bombing you out of nowhere, or buzzing your head a few times until you get the message and back off. They can come at you so quickly that you won't know what they are until they zoom past you. You just hear this loud buzzing sound and see a large object dart just past your face. At first it seems like a monstrously proportioned bumblebee, until you look back and realize it's a hummingbird.

In re native plants, it is possible to grow a quasi-traditional grass lawn using native grasses, like Buffalograss. It will look like prairie grass, and not necessarily like the archetypal, deep-green fescue patch. But if you're living in a drought-prone area, you really shouldn't be growing thirsty, exotic grass lawns in the first place. It's bordering on socially irresponsible in certain parts of the country (Southern California, I'm looking at you).

My poor dog got dive-bombed by hummingbirds, poor girl didn't know what happened.

And you're right on about Buffalo grass - it was pretty popular in the Austin, TX area.

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