Comments for The Earthworm's Lair: Owen Dell's Sustainable Landscaping Blog http://owendell.com/blog Musings, humor, and practical advice about sustainable landscaping and related subjects by the master of the craft: Landscape architect, educator, and author Owen E. Dell Mon, 23 Jan 2012 15:36:00 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3 Comment on Roll Out the Rain Barrels? by Owen http://owendell.com/blog/general/roll-out-the-rain-barrels/comment-page-16#comment-42258 Owen Mon, 23 Jan 2012 15:36:00 +0000 http://owendell.com/blog/?p=47#comment-42258 Hey Macossay, When you're on my blog, don't be an asshole, OK? If you can't deal with your anger management problem and behave in a civil manner then go away. And if you want to say "fucking" instead of the silly euphemism "frigging" then I want you to know that you are free to do so here. As for the 140,000 number, it came from the Los Angeles Metropolitan Water District, so I consider it legitimate. It is also borne out by other statistics. You may not want to believe it, but it's true. And just because you don't believe it doesn't give you permission to behave like a boor. Oh, and congratulations on your amazingly low water use. It's hard to believe it's true! Hey Macossay,

When you’re on my blog, don’t be an asshole, OK? If you can’t deal with your anger management problem and behave in a civil manner then go away. And if you want to say “fucking” instead of the silly euphemism “frigging” then I want you to know that you are free to do so here. As for the 140,000 number, it came from the Los Angeles Metropolitan Water District, so I consider it legitimate. It is also borne out by other statistics. You may not want to believe it, but it’s true. And just because you don’t believe it doesn’t give you permission to behave like a boor. Oh, and congratulations on your amazingly low water use. It’s hard to believe it’s true!

]]> Comment on Roll Out the Rain Barrels? by Macossay http://owendell.com/blog/general/roll-out-the-rain-barrels/comment-page-16#comment-42253 Macossay Mon, 23 Jan 2012 15:06:42 +0000 http://owendell.com/blog/?p=47#comment-42253 You don't actually have a working brain, do you, Owen? 140,000 gallons to water a .17 acre yard? The average California family uses a quarter million gallons per year? Are they living in frigging rice paddies? I have a 1/8 acre lot and my total water bill -- that includes yard and household and washing my car -- has never exceeded 220 gallons per month. You don’t actually have a working brain, do you, Owen? 140,000 gallons to water a .17 acre yard? The average California family uses a quarter million gallons per year? Are they living in frigging rice paddies?

I have a 1/8 acre lot and my total water bill — that includes yard and household and washing my car — has never exceeded 220 gallons per month.

]]> Comment on Garden Wise Guys News by ron tucker http://owendell.com/blog/garden-wise-guys/garden-wise-guys-news/comment-page-1#comment-39672 ron tucker Wed, 04 Jan 2012 03:24:19 +0000 http://owendell.com/blog/general/garden-wise-guys-news#comment-39672 What a great discovery. The garden wise guys have added another site for me to visit and enjoy. I'm still smiling. What a great discovery. The garden wise guys have added another site for me to visit and enjoy. I’m still smiling.
ron tucker´s last [type] ..Mulch Your Garden!! | East Texas Gardening

]]> Comment on The Attack of the Designosaurs by ron tucker http://owendell.com/blog/sustainable-landscaping/the-attack-of-the-designosaurs/comment-page-2#comment-39669 ron tucker Wed, 04 Jan 2012 03:07:35 +0000 http://owendell.com/blog/general/the-attack-of-the-designosaurs#comment-39669 What I try to do with my customers is to steer them towards drought tolerate perennials and water wise annuals. Native grasses , once established, make for a beautiful landscape whether planted in masses or as an accent plant. What I try to do with my customers is to steer them towards drought tolerate perennials and water wise annuals. Native grasses , once established, make for a beautiful landscape whether planted in masses or as an accent plant.

]]> Comment on Roll Out the Rain Barrels? by Heike Zurcher http://owendell.com/blog/general/roll-out-the-rain-barrels/comment-page-16#comment-38481 Heike Zurcher Mon, 26 Dec 2011 20:58:19 +0000 http://owendell.com/blog/?p=47#comment-38481 We have a spot in our two bedroom apartment for a rainwater collection system and to our amazing satisfaction we have been able to recharge the water under by about four tankfuls in our 6x4x4 foot water tank. We do our best to reuse all of the water we get. :) We have a spot in our two bedroom apartment for a rainwater collection system and to our amazing satisfaction we have been able to recharge the water under by about four tankfuls in our 6x4x4 foot water tank. We do our best to reuse all of the water we get. :)

]]> Comment on Roll Out the Rain Barrels? by Tony Mascarello http://owendell.com/blog/general/roll-out-the-rain-barrels/comment-page-15#comment-34750 Tony Mascarello Thu, 01 Dec 2011 22:32:26 +0000 http://owendell.com/blog/?p=47#comment-34750 When you consider the bigger picture of simple re-use of natural resources, I guess I'm of the mindset that every little bit helps. No it may not be a solution by any stretch of the imagination, but it is a step in the right direction. Rain barrels are merely an entry level point for most people in our area. They start there and down the road, they have us install a larger underground system that we can incorporate into their landscape plan. Also, while we in the Midwest definitely have a decent amount of rain, we also have a steady drought season mid summer. Essentially, around our neck of the woods, the water gets used and replenished fairly steadily. The other side to the coin is that even in areas of excess rainfall, the water collected can serve other purposes aside from irrigation. A properly installed system provides sufficient filtration so that harvested water, while not considered "potable" can be used for not potable purposes such as toilets and washing machines reducing the need to use potable water resources. Again though, I would mention that similar to the "new" green roof concepts, it's not necessarily always about what your going to get in return but what your giving back. Any reduction in use of natural resources in my opinion is good. Yes rain barrels and other such materials utilize natural resources when produced, but consider that their is the potential for recycling the rain barrels while the more we contaminate rain water with pollutants as it crosses our over fertilized lawns to reach our oil and garbage covered streets to make its way through our sewers to our estuaries to eventually arrive in our oceans....well, that's something we haven't discovered how to take back as far as I'm aware. Yes their are issues, but I still don't feel that the "costs" outweigh the "returns". Ultimately, I guess, consumers need to do their homework and educate themselves in the pro's and con's of any purchase they consider. When you consider the bigger picture of simple re-use of natural resources, I guess I’m of the mindset that every little bit helps. No it may not be a solution by any stretch of the imagination, but it is a step in the right direction. Rain barrels are merely an entry level point for most people in our area. They start there and down the road, they have us install a larger underground system that we can incorporate into their landscape plan. Also, while we in the Midwest definitely have a decent amount of rain, we also have a steady drought season mid summer. Essentially, around our neck of the woods, the water gets used and replenished fairly steadily. The other side to the coin is that even in areas of excess rainfall, the water collected can serve other purposes aside from irrigation. A properly installed system provides sufficient filtration so that harvested water, while not considered “potable” can be used for not potable purposes such as toilets and washing machines reducing the need to use potable water resources.
Again though, I would mention that similar to the “new” green roof concepts, it’s not necessarily always about what your going to get in return but what your giving back. Any reduction in use of natural resources in my opinion is good. Yes rain barrels and other such materials utilize natural resources when produced, but consider that their is the potential for recycling the rain barrels while the more we contaminate rain water with pollutants as it crosses our over fertilized lawns to reach our oil and garbage covered streets to make its way through our sewers to our estuaries to eventually arrive in our oceans….well, that’s something we haven’t discovered how to take back as far as I’m aware. Yes their are issues, but I still don’t feel that the “costs” outweigh the “returns”. Ultimately, I guess, consumers need to do their homework and educate themselves in the pro’s and con’s of any purchase they consider.
Tony Mascarello´s last [type] ..Back to reality for a few more weeks until our next holiday break. Weather is h…

]]> Comment on Roll Out the Rain Barrels? by Owen http://owendell.com/blog/general/roll-out-the-rain-barrels/comment-page-15#comment-34321 Owen Mon, 28 Nov 2011 23:50:21 +0000 http://owendell.com/blog/?p=47#comment-34321 Hi Jess. This was covered in the comments a while back, but it has gotten lost in the flurry of discussion. Actually, we really do get to use only 60 gallons of water per year. Here's why: We have a ±7 to 9 month drought, and there's only 60 gallons of water at the beginning of the dry season, so that's literally all there is. In other words, there is virtually zero rainfall from April through October and often little or none in March and November as well. There's just one chance to fill that barrel up at the end of winter. That's why rain barrels are useless in any area where rainfall is both scant and highly seasonal. So there's no flaw in the math; it's just a matter of where you live. As for your climate, if the barrel refills so often, and rainfall is so regular, I have to ask why you even need supplemental irrigation? We would kill for a rainfall pattern like that, and our plants would love it. In any and all cases, 60 gallons of water is useless to irrigate anything more than a few houseplants. My figures prove the case for our climate. Yours may differ, but 60 gallons of water is still just a little dab compared to what any landscape in any climate needs unless it has been designed to thrive on natural rainfall only (which is pretty east to do in any region, using a native and climate-adapted plant palette). Make sense? Hi Jess.

This was covered in the comments a while back, but it has gotten lost in the flurry of discussion.

Actually, we really do get to use only 60 gallons of water per year. Here’s why: We have a ±7 to 9 month drought, and there’s only 60 gallons of water at the beginning of the dry season, so that’s literally all there is. In other words, there is virtually zero rainfall from April through October and often little or none in March and November as well. There’s just one chance to fill that barrel up at the end of winter. That’s why rain barrels are useless in any area where rainfall is both scant and highly seasonal. So there’s no flaw in the math; it’s just a matter of where you live.

As for your climate, if the barrel refills so often, and rainfall is so regular, I have to ask why you even need supplemental irrigation? We would kill for a rainfall pattern like that, and our plants would love it.

In any and all cases, 60 gallons of water is useless to irrigate anything more than a few houseplants. My figures prove the case for our climate. Yours may differ, but 60 gallons of water is still just a little dab compared to what any landscape in any climate needs unless it has been designed to thrive on natural rainfall only (which is pretty east to do in any region, using a native and climate-adapted plant palette).

Make sense?

]]> Comment on Roll Out the Rain Barrels? by jess http://owendell.com/blog/general/roll-out-the-rain-barrels/comment-page-15#comment-34217 jess Mon, 28 Nov 2011 05:32:20 +0000 http://owendell.com/blog/?p=47#comment-34217 While I generally agree that you can't use rain barrels for all your needs ALWAYS, your math has a serious flaw. You are assuming that each rain barrel only supplies 60 gallons of water a year, when in fact it can hold 60 gallons at any one time, and can refill many times during the year. It takes one rain to fill the barrel up, on average for me in my climate, and the barrel provides a good soaking when rain has not done its job to the area that it is in. If I had to guess, in the average year, it has the ability to fill up approximately 60-80 times where I live, so it indeed generally is able to do its job. Oh, and with just the one barrel. I suspect in my (East Coast) climate if I wanted to do everything I needed to water I'd need about 4, but the original reason was because it was extremely difficult to get water out to the area in question. And btw, the rain barrel didn't cost that much at all ($60 bucks), and it paid for itself very quickly... in about 2 months I'd say. It might not work in Santa Fe or Santa Barbara, but it does work in many other places in the country, where rainfall can be plentiful, but not consistent, excessive heat during summer can require daily watering, becoming a money saver even if it rains every other day, and City water is quiet expensive. While I generally agree that you can’t use rain barrels for all your needs ALWAYS, your math has a serious flaw. You are assuming that each rain barrel only supplies 60 gallons of water a year, when in fact it can hold 60 gallons at any one time, and can refill many times during the year. It takes one rain to fill the barrel up, on average for me in my climate, and the barrel provides a good soaking when rain has not done its job to the area that it is in. If I had to guess, in the average year, it has the ability to fill up approximately 60-80 times where I live, so it indeed generally is able to do its job. Oh, and with just the one barrel. I suspect in my (East Coast) climate if I wanted to do everything I needed to water I’d need about 4, but the original reason was because it was extremely difficult to get water out to the area in question.

And btw, the rain barrel didn’t cost that much at all ($60 bucks), and it paid for itself very quickly… in about 2 months I’d say. It might not work in Santa Fe or Santa Barbara, but it does work in many other places in the country, where rainfall can be plentiful, but not consistent, excessive heat during summer can require daily watering, becoming a money saver even if it rains every other day, and City water is quiet expensive.

]]> Comment on Local Man Reconnects With Nature on Facebook by Landscaping Katy http://owendell.com/blog/general/local-man-reconnects-with-nature-on-facebook/comment-page-1#comment-33645 Landscaping Katy Thu, 24 Nov 2011 03:52:16 +0000 http://owendell.com/blog/?p=105#comment-33645 Not totally about landscaping as you said but it reaffirms my conviction that nature always gives us a fresh perspective and if we're always connected it renews the spirit. Not totally about landscaping as you said but it reaffirms my conviction that nature always gives us a fresh perspective and if we’re always connected it renews the spirit.

]]> Comment on Water Budget Busting by Austin Seofirm http://owendell.com/blog/general/water-budget-busting-2/comment-page-2#comment-29902 Austin Seofirm Mon, 24 Oct 2011 22:58:27 +0000 http://owendell.com/blog/?p=84#comment-29902 Great advice (in contrast with that video!) I've also noticed that a lot of the irrigation companies are opposed to drip irrigation -- which is the most effective way to deliver water exactly where you want it. There's a lot of bad advice out there; thanks for setting the record straight. Great advice (in contrast with that video!) I’ve also noticed that a lot of the irrigation companies are opposed to drip irrigation — which is the most effective way to deliver water exactly where you want it. There’s a lot of bad advice out there; thanks for setting the record straight.

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