Luanne Barlet: Yes, our lawns, gardens and plants can get by on less water

A letter writer (“Riverbank’s rules will kill plants,” Dec. 26) suggested that watering once a week will kill landscape plants. It won’t.

It has been raining once a week for about six weeks, meaning your automatic sprinklers should be off. Most of our “rain events” have lasted from several hours to two days; there is no need to water within 48 hours of any rain event.

I live in the country and I am not forced to follow city water regulations. During our hot summer, I watered once a week to once every 10 days. My garden did amazingly well and my lawn didn’t die.

Have you heard of mulch? You can buy it at any garden store or make your own. Putting mulch around your plants helps hold in moisture. Potted plants need watering by hand only once a week. Lawns go dormant; watering them in the winter is a waste of water.

The only possible problem with Riverbank’s watering rules might be the time of no watering, between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. on weekdays and between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. on weekends. I suggest you write a letter to the council or city manager to let them know your concerns. In the meantime, I advise following the rules; there will be no more warnings, just fines.

This story was originally published December 29, 2015 at 12:14 PM with the headline "Luanne Barlet: Yes, our lawns, gardens and plants can get by on less water."