Construction Photography: Tear Down the Wall
October 30th, 2009My front yard was graced (if you want to call it that) by a crumbling brick retaining wall. The wall had no seep holes, which meant that it was gradually being weakened by moisture.
Time to tear down the wall.
I wanted replace the old wall with something more attractive. Since I'm a member of the Watershed Management Group's Water Harvesting Co-op, I had a great opportunity to enlist others in working and learning project.
WMG's Matthew Bertrand and I formulated a plan: We'd replace the wall with a rock garden full of low water use plants. (The new plants would fill in the outermost zone of my xeriscape, which is the arid zone. The other two zones are oais, which is closest to the house, and transitional, between the oasis and the arid zone.)
Here's Matthew, hard at work during our pre-workshop meeting. He's removing one of three barrel cactii that will be re-planted in the rock garden...
Then it was wall demolition time. Here's Li'l John Excavating on the job. And let me tell you, the demolition was so well done that it was like watching a ballet dance with a backhoe...
Workshop day, Sunday, October 25, dawned bright and sunny. Soon, my front yard was filled with eager WMG Co-op members.
The first order of business was moving rocks and rubble out of the way so that the crew could get to work. Then they set about removing the few bricks that the backhoe couldn't get at...
On the other side of the yard, Judy cuts down a mesquite tree that's never done very well. The tree has since been reused as mulch and firewood...
Time to start building the rock terrace for the garden. WMG's workshop leader, Matthew Bertrand (kneeling, left), provides some instruction...
Having been properly instructed, the WMG Co-opers set rocks into place and begin the planting...
All done! Time for a victory photo...
Tip: You can view more construction photography in my portfolio. I am also available for construction photography assignments in Tucson, Arizona, and elsewhere. To check availability and to request a proposal, please contact me.
Nature Photography: Prickly Pear and Mesquite
July 29th, 2009When I bought this property in November 2004, it had no landscaping. There was crushed rock in the front yard and a formidable infestation of Bermuda grass in the back yard.
I've done most of the landscaping work myself. This includes the landscape design, planting, weeding, and other maintenance tasks. To learn how to do these things properly, I've taken free or low-cost classes through the University of Arizona Cooperative Extension, Watershed Management Group, Brad Lancaster, and NEST, Inc.
These classes have helped me avoid major mistakes, but I will confess to over-pruning my mesquite trees back in 2006. A few weeks later, a UA Cooperative Extension instructor advised against pruning mesquites at all.
So, I'm letting them grow back the way they want to. And that's just what they're doing...
I've hired outside help for tasks like underground utility location, digging and rock-lining of the drainage swale that runs from the back yard to the front, delivering and distributing inorganic and organic mulch, digging planting basins, and uprooting the aforementioned Bermuda grass.
A tight budget has dictated my choice of plants: low water use only. It also has dictated how I acquired plants. I brought potted prickly pear and aloe from where I'd been renting before. Friends and neighbors contributed others, and the rest were purchased from plant sales, private nurseries, and Trees for Tucson.
Since I wasn't too keen on installing an irrigation system and paying a higher water bill, I decided to use greywater and rainwater to keep the landscape going. My greywater harvesting system is simple: I capture water from my bathtub and kitchen sink, then bucket it out to the plants.
My greywater harvesting equipment consists of one siphon and three plastic buckets. Since the tub drain plug leaks, I seal it off with a ring of plumber's putty. Total cost of this equipment: Less than $20.00. The only ongoing cost is the purchase of Oasis biodegradable soap that I wash dishes and bathe with.
I've adopted a xeriscaping approach out of necessity. Buckets of greywater can get heavy in a hurry. That's as good a reason as any to keep the "oasis" plants close to the house. I would like to add a rainwater harvesting cistern to the mix, but that's down the road. For now, the plants are doing just fine with my bucket system and occasional supplementation from that Great Watering Can in the Sky.
Tip: You can view more nature photography in my portfolio.
Nature Photography: Greening Up for Summer
July 17th, 2009Tucson's summer monsoon season is in full swing. This is rendering swamp coolers ineffective and that's bad news for some of us. (I have a swamp cooler.)
However, the plants are welcoming the rain the only way they know how. They're getting very green. And the cactii are plump again. Here's how the plant life is doing at my place...
Tip: You can view more nature photography in my portfolio.
Construction Photography: Yard Makeover
August 4th, 2008This past Saturday, the Watershed Management Group helped me get my yard into better shape. Permit me to explain...
After I moved in here, I set about the task of planting a xeriscape so I wouldn't spend a fortune on water bills. In addition to planting low-water use plants, I tried to contour the property so that water would soak in around the greenery and stay away from the house. But, alas, some recent summer downpours showed me that there was more work to be done.
WMG to the rescue.
Early Saturday morning, a WMG workshop leader, eight Water Harvesting Co-op members, and three neighbors joined me for a work party. They constructed berms to keep water around the plants and away from the house...
They rerouted my drainage swale so that it takes overflow from one planting basin and directs it to another...
And they planted low water use trees that will help shade the house...
Tip: You can view more construction photography in my portfolio. I am also available for construction photography assignments in Tucson, Arizona, and elsewhere. To check availability and to request a proposal, please contact me.
Nature Photography: Xeriscapes and a Prickly Pear Cactus Sunrise
May 30th, 2008Good landscape planning and design is one of those things that a lot of us talk about, and some of us even do it.
But, here's Martha from Reality-ville: I didn't plan the design of my yard. I just made it up as I went along. And my forary into water harvesting was motivated more by a desire to save money on the water bill than anything else.
Be that as it may, I do have a xeriscape going out there. And it kinda-sorta follows the notion of dividing one's yard into xeriscape zones:
- The Oasis is the zone that sits closest to the house. This is where you put the plants that really like the water. I have my lantanas in the Oasis. And, for low-tech water harvesters who are schlepping buckets of graywater from the bathtub, this is a good thing. It means that you won't very have as far to schlep with those heavy buckets.
- The Transition Zone is a good place to put plants that need occasional watering. My trailing rosemary falls into this category.
- The Arid Zone is a fabulous place for cactus and other native species that can get by on rainwater only. However, there's nothing that says that you can't plant "security cactus" right next to your house. A lot of people do this to deter burglars. That's what this stand of prickly pear cactus is doing...
Tip: You can view more nature photography in my portfolio.
