Xeriscaping in Sacramento

If you’re looking to beautify your residential or commercial Sacramento property, the landscapers at Montoy's Landscaping are here to offer our valued xeriscaping services. We create stunning, sustainable xeriscapes that thrive in the local climate and offer long-term viability and aesthetic value.

We specialize in selecting drought-tolerant plants, integrating efficient irrigation systems, and devising innovative design solutions to reduce water usage while enhancing the beauty and functionality of your outdoor space.

Call (530) 867-2332 to learn more about how we can make your property more resilient and environmentally friendly.

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Montoy's Landscaping’s Xeriscaping Services

Our xeriscaping services are designed to benefit those in drought-prone regions like Sacramento, as well as anyone looking to minimize their reliance on water. By focusing on sustainable landscaping practices, we can help you create beautiful outdoor spaces that thrive with minimal water usage for years to come.

Here's what we can do for your property:

Design and planning
Plant selection
Soil improvement
Efficient irrigation
Mulching
Lawn reduction
Ongoing maintenance
…and more

Will Xeriscaping Reduce Your Reliance on Water?

Everyone knows that turf guzzles water, and you must constantly be weeding, feeding, and mowing it. Xeriscaping accommodates the microclimate and region where you live, resulting in a healthier and easy to care for property that requires far less water. Furthermore, soil conservation that protects the urban environment has been talked about for decades, but dry landscaping is one of the best ways to achieve this in a highly economical way.

Some of the ways we can efficiently reduce your need for constant watering include:

Efficient irrigation: By implementing efficient irrigation systems, such as drip irrigation and soaker hoses, xeriscaping ensures water is delivered directly to the plant roots, minimizing evaporation and runoff. This targeted watering approach significantly reduces water waste.
Soil improvement: Enhancing the soil with organic matter improves its water-retaining capacity, allowing the soil to hold onto moisture longer and reducing the need for frequent watering.
Mulching: Applying a layer of mulch around plants helps to retain soil moisture, suppresses weeds, and reduces evaporation. Mulch acts as an insulating barrier, keeping the soil cooler and more hydrated.

Which Plants Require Less Water?

In Sacramento’s hot and dry climate, choosing the right plants for your xeriscape garden is crucial to conserving water and maintaining a beautiful landscape. Surprisingly, even some vibrant and lush plants require minimal water. For instance, the California Poppy, the state flower, isn’t only eye-catching with its bright orange blooms but also remarkably drought-tolerant once established.

Here are some other excellent water-efficient plants suitable for Sacramento

Lavender
Succulents
Agave
Manzanita
Yarrow
Rosemary
…and more

By incorporating these and other drought-tolerant plants, our landscape contractors can help you create a stunning and sustainable garden that conserves water and flourishes in the local climate.

Will Xeriscape Yard Design Prevent Soil Erosion

Xeriscape yard design can significantly help prevent soil erosion. The riprap method is one of our most reliable approaches. Riprap involves placing a layer of large rocks or boulders along slopes or areas prone to heavy erosion, such as drainage ditches or the bases of slopes. The rocks reduce the erosive power of water and protect the soil underneath.

Utilizing anchor plants (plants with deep and strong root systems) can make a big difference, too. Placing rocks and boulders around anchor plants can provide additional stability. The roots of these plants grip the soil while the rocks protect the root zones and reduce surface erosion.

Preparing Yourself for a Xeriscape Property

When starting your dry landscaping, consider a few techniques to prevent damage to trees. Place fencing around trees to protect from heavy equipment that can cause compaction of the soil when driving over or being stored under trees. Compaction damages the root system. Also, if you need to locate utility lines, use a tunnel method instead of trenching, which can injure tree roots. Keep your topsoil; it takes years of natural processes to create soil, and once it is lost, you may have no choice but to pay to import more if you need it for contouring or to support plant life. If you need to remove topsoil during your project, choose a temporary location in the yard to pile it, and return it where necessary afterwards.

Steps for Xeriscape Design

What do you want from your landscape? Is there anything you want to hide or highlight? Are you going to do any entertaining there, or will children or pets to play there? To enjoy your property to the fullest, you will want to consider these multiple uses in detail.

Once you have an idea on how you want your yard to loo, pay attention to the sloping on your property. Water will run down to the lowest level, so place the plants with the highest water needs at the bottom of slopes. You will want to limit the runoff of water, however; mulches and ground cover plants can help absorb water and prevent too much water loss. Mulch also slows weed growth and protects plants with shallow roots from frost.

You must also practice zoning, which means, you must group your plants according to how much water and sunlight they need. Of course, you will be using drought-tolerant plants, which use less water and don’t need a moist soil, but this makes zoning more important, not less. You can easily waterlog a plant that has low water needs. On the other hand, you will want to use plenty of mulch to hold moisture in those areas where you place plants that do need some water retention.

To begin your conversion, follow these steps:

Use a glyphosate to kill the turf; wait a week for the grass to die.
Plant ground cover
Place mulch around and between plants.
Add additional plants according to zoning plan

Montoy's Landscaping Is Ready to Help You Get Started

You May have plenty of questions about which local plants are the best suited to your project. Montoy's Landscaping can help you with your design plan, plant choices, and any other concerns you may have about irrigation, weed and pest control, and fertilizing.