When Christine Turk and her husband, Kyong, saw their first water bill at their new home in Puu Lani Ranch, they knew they had to make some changes. A lot of their 1-acre parcel was planted in grass. They definitely wanted to create a landscape that needed less water. They redesigned most of the site with rock gardens filled with succulents and cactus. In doing so they managed to reduce their water bill to 20 percent of the original cost. Not only is their current landscape low maintenance and drought tolerant, it is also beautiful.
While transitioning to their xeriscape garden Christine’s declaration to her plants was, “If you need a lot of water, we don’t want you.” Any plants that died once the water was reduced were not replaced.
The grass was the first to go. They liked the greenery around their pool but didn’t want the maintenance and mess. Their solution was artificial grass. It looks great, needs no water or maintenance and no grass clippings get in the pool. They were also able to install a low maintenance putting green on the property with the same artificial grass.
Though Christine admits the grass was expensive to install, “we think the savings on water and maintenance will pay for it over time,” she said.
Read the complete article here http://westhawaiitoday.com/news/local-features/thorns-and-prickles-abound-christine-s-cactus-garden