The Dry Garden: Descanso in recovery
Schematic from the Long Range Conceptual Plan for Descanso Gardens developed with the Portico Group. Click on the drawing to be taken to the Seattle company's master plan for Descanso.
Nowhere in the West is sustainable gardening a harder sell than in Southern California. Public gardens preach conservation, but their grounds are surrounded by turf. The message to visitors: Eastern-style, highly irrigated gardening is not just OK here, it’s the way it’s done.
And so, it is beyond refreshing, more like happy dance exciting, that Descanso Gardens has begun what will be a long-range overhaul in which water conservation is the central theme. The messaging will start with the landscaping.
A 237-page review, grandly titled a “Long Range Conceptual Plan,” outlines what will one day be a sweeping overhaul with a paean to water. “The structure of the garden plants, native and introduced, is informed by water. The Gardens’ cultural …
Waterman
From the Pasadena-based NPR affiliate KPCC: “In the spring of 2008, author and National Geographic grantee Jonathan Waterman launched a journey by boat and by foot down the Colorado River. His 1,450-mile trip began at the river’s source in Rocky Mountain National Park and followed the river through the Sonoran desert and the parched Mexican delta, all the way to the Pacific Ocean. The Colorado River supplies water for more that 30 million people and 3 million farm acres and is the most diverted and litigated river in the world. Through his journey, John Waterman gets to the heart of the complex issues facing the river whose water levels have dipped to an all-time low. His book examines the impact of the Colorado’s peril on a vast region and looks at the immense debate over water use …
“Waterblogged”
The People issue of LA Weekly, online tonight, on stands tomorrow, includes Chance of Rain’s Emily Green, photo left. The surrounding garden, including the photo detail with native sages and a Mediterranean olive, are part of an 8,700 square foot lot with a small house in central Los Angeles where water consumption has been reduced largely through landscape changes from 150 gallons per day to 50. Lushness is achieved through use of mediterranean climate plants and aggressive rainwater harvesting. All but the vegetable garden and fruit trees will go dormant — and unwatered — in the summer. Emily Green’s column on water conservation in the landscape, The Dry Garden, appears every Friday online in the Los Angeles Times.…
Miss Emily regrets
… that she will not be logging onto Facebook today. MoveOn.org has an interesting drive aimed at improving Facebook’s privacy policy. I upgraded my privacy guarantee independently by today deleting my account. Those interested in this site’s updates, largely from the worlds of water and gardening, may elect to follow links on Twitter, or not. To those Facebook friends who found themselves deleted, it was nothing personal, which was precisely the problem. UPDATE: For MoveOn.org’s latest Facebook statement, click here.…
TV water
You may have heard of the illusory quality of paper water. Well, for fantasy value, the rights system that allocates Western water far beyond the volume of actual H2O has been briefly and deliriously topped. Last night on the ABC show “Brothers & Sisters,” a network TV family discovered water (in an aquifer!).
Admitting to having watched it is embarrassing. This show puts most right wing vanilla treacle in the savory category. But it’s always interesting to see California’s water supply on TV. “You’ve heard about California’s water problems!” cried the babbling idiot characters. “We’re rich!”
I can’t wait to see how they develop the water. They’d have a hit if next season Stewart Resnick showed up. Casting would be a no-brainer: Larry Hagman.
PS: If you have a TV, don’t watch this crap. It’s evil. Instead, watch Treme on HBO, set in post-Katrina New Orleans. Now there’s a show …
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