This is the most beautiful and most common sense front yard we have so far seen in all of Southern California. We found it in Pasadena, just South of Caltech. The owners planted drought tolerant vegetation like agaves, cacti and sage. They water about once a week in summer, and almost never in winter. They promise that their yard will look even more stunning when the California poppies start blooming in January. We hope to be able to get a shot of that, too.
The mystery:
Why is this pleasant semi-arid landscape surrounded by a gazillion unsexy lawns? And why are the latter the standard front yard solution all over the city?
We don’t have the answers. But we know this:
The council of Pasadena has just declared that the city is threatened by a serious water crisis and has implemented “Water Shortage Plan 1.” Among other things, it bans the hosing down of sidewalks, limits landscape watering to once every three days and demands that people turn off their sprinklers from 10 am to 5 pm. Adherence to the plan is voluntary. If Pasadena Water and Power becomes aware of water wasters, they will send out a so called “conservation reminder”. If you’d like to become a snitch on a particular water hog (which we absolutely encourage), you can fill in a form online.
Talking about anti hog measures:
The City of Long Beach, also in L.A. County, implemented similar methods in September. Since then, water consumption in town has dropped drastically, hitting a ten-year record low in November (pdf).
Of all Southern Californian cities, Los Angeles has so far shown the most astonishing way of dealing with the crisis. According to the L.A. Times, City water officials said earlier in December that they plan to wait for several more months – yes: months – to see if the situation improves. We wish them the best of luck.
(photo: Backhouse Images)
