Before Xeriscape

Winter is the best time to rethink your high water use turfgrass and create a plan for a xeriscape yard of desert-friendly plants. A desert friendly xeriscape will help you save water, reduce maintenance, encourage pollinators, and beat the heat of the summer.  We define a desert friendly xeriscape as a landscape that has half of the total landscape area with desert friendly plants selected from our Xeriscape Guide and typically watered with drip systems or by hand.

Water Authority residential customers who transform their landscapes from high water use turfgrass to a desert friendly xeriscape can qualify for a $1.00 per square foot rebate. If you are interested in participating in the Desert Friendly Xeriscape Conversion Rebate, please do not start your turf removal project until you have applied online to the program and schedule an initial inspection. An initial inspection is required before removing your grass lawn to see if your project qualifies. If you answer yes to the questions below, your landscape meets the minimum requirements.

  • Do you have living turfgrass on your site? (Rebates cannot be given to work that is already complete.)
  • Do you have an existing operating SPRAY irrigation system on your site?
  • If you answered YES to the above questions, then your next step is to create the landscape plan, apply and schedule an inspection. Feel free to AskAnExpert@abcwua.org for tips on planning your desert friendly xeriscape.

To learn more about this rebate visit our Residential Xeriscape Conversion Rebate page.

Author: Jill Brown, ASLA, is a Landscape Architect and owner of My Landscape Coach in Albuquerque, NM. Have a question about the article? AskAnExpert@abcwua.org