Xeriscape landscaping project examples in the Grand Valley Gardens, by the numbers.

Example write-ups that show the kind of projects we design and build: what the yard was like, what we did and the typical size and time. Photos and plan drawings are illustrations, not a specific customer's home, and water figures are general estimates.

Flagstone patio with a lit fire pit, lounge chairs and softly uplit desert willows at blue hour

Backyard · Redlands backyard

Fire-pit courtyard below the Monument

A windy backyard of thirsty bluegrass with nowhere sheltered to sit in the evening.

Area: About 3,800 sq ft
Typical time: About 3 weeks on site
Est. water saved: est. 50,000 gal / yr

Plan drawing of a flagstone fire-pit court with boulders and native meadow planting

01Backyard

Fire-pit courtyard below the Monument

Setting: Redlands backyard
Area: About 3,800 sq ft
Typical time: About 3 weeks on site
Est. water saved: est. 50,000 gal / yr

The problem

A windy backyard of thirsty bluegrass with nowhere sheltered to sit in the evening.

What we did

Lowered a flagstone fire-pit court to cut the evening wind, ringed it with sandstone boulders, replaced the lawn with a native grass meadow on a three-zone drip system and added warm, shielded path lighting.

Scope

Design
Flagstone
Boulders
Drip irrigation
Lighting

Plant palette

Blue grama
Little bluestem
Palmer's penstemon
Parry's agave
Desert willow

Example write-ups for illustration. Photos and plans are not a specific customer's property; water savings are estimates that depend on how the old lawn was watered.

Hands fitting a drip emitter onto a black irrigation line beside a sagebrush in mulch

Turf conversion · Fruita front yard

Front-and-side lawn conversion

A large lawn that took hours of mowing every week, and a side yard where storm water pooled.

Area: About 5,200 sq ft
Typical time: About 2 weeks on site
Est. water saved: est. 70,000 gal / yr

Plan drawing of a converted front yard with dry creek bed, grasses and drip lines

02Turf conversion

Front-and-side lawn conversion

Setting: Fruita front yard
Area: About 5,200 sq ft
Typical time: About 2 weeks on site
Est. water saved: est. 70,000 gal / yr

The problem

A large lawn that took hours of mowing every week, and a side yard where storm water pooled.

What we did

Removed the bluegrass, regraded the side yard into a dry creek bed that soaks up storm water, and replanted with tough natives on drip with a smart controller.

Scope

Turf removal
Grading
Dry creek bed
Drip irrigation

Plant palette

Rabbitbrush
Apache plume
Globemallow
Blue avena grass
Fernbush

Example write-ups for illustration. Photos and plans are not a specific customer's property; water savings are estimates that depend on how the old lawn was watered.

Firecracker penstemon, blanketflower and yellow rabbitbrush blooming among river rock and silver sage

Backyard · Palisade backyard

Terrace beside an orchard

A house with no usable outdoor room, next to fruit trees on their own irrigation.

Area: About 6,400 sq ft
Typical time: About 3 to 4 weeks on site
Est. water saved: est. 35,000 gal / yr

Plan drawing of a flagstone terrace stepping down toward orchard trees with lighting

03Backyard

Terrace beside an orchard

Setting: Palisade backyard
Area: About 6,400 sq ft
Typical time: About 3 to 4 weeks on site
Est. water saved: est. 35,000 gal / yr

The problem

A house with no usable outdoor room, next to fruit trees on their own irrigation.

What we did

Built a broad flagstone terrace with a steel-edged planting band into the trees, uplit the boulders and kept the new drip zones separate from the orchard irrigation.

Scope

Design
Flagstone terrace
Boulders
Lighting
Drip irrigation

Plant palette

Hummingbird mint
Russian sage
Blue grama
Sand cherry
Desert four o'clock

Example write-ups for illustration. Photos and plans are not a specific customer's property; water savings are estimates that depend on how the old lawn was watered.

Crushed-granite garden path curving past blue agaves, yucca, ornamental grasses, red sandstone boulders and low path lights beside a stucco house at sunset

Front yard · Orchard Mesa front yard

South-facing front-yard meadow

A narrow front lawn that baked every afternoon and browned out each August.

Area: About 2,900 sq ft
Typical time: About 1 to 2 weeks on site
Est. water saved: est. 40,000 gal / yr

Plan drawing of a front-yard meadow with a central path and drip-irrigated beds

04Front yard

South-facing front-yard meadow

Setting: Orchard Mesa front yard
Area: About 2,900 sq ft
Typical time: About 1 to 2 weeks on site
Est. water saved: est. 40,000 gal / yr

The problem

A narrow front lawn that baked every afternoon and browned out each August.

What we did

Replaced the lawn with drifts of grasses and long-blooming perennials, a crushed-granite path to the door, and a few accent boulders and agaves for winter structure.

Scope

Turf removal
Design
Boulders
Drip irrigation

Plant palette

Little bluestem
Firecracker penstemon
Parry's agave
Blackfoot daisy
Pine-leaf penstemon

Example write-ups for illustration. Photos and plans are not a specific customer's property; water savings are estimates that depend on how the old lawn was watered.

Xeriscape front yard with a gravel and flagstone path, agave, yucca, blue grasses and purple penstemon in front of an adobe-style home

Front yard · Historic-district front yard

Formal forecourt for a bungalow

An older home with clipped lawn and thirsty hedges that the owners wanted to keep looking formal.

Area: About 1,700 sq ft
Typical time: About 2 weeks on site
Est. water saved: est. 20,000 gal / yr

Plan drawing of a symmetrical flagstone forecourt with paired shade trees

05Front yard

Formal forecourt for a bungalow

Setting: Historic-district front yard
Area: About 1,700 sq ft
Typical time: About 2 weeks on site
Est. water saved: est. 20,000 gal / yr

The problem

An older home with clipped lawn and thirsty hedges that the owners wanted to keep looking formal.

What we did

Drew a symmetrical flagstone forecourt between paired shade trees, filled the beds with clipped native shrubs and soft grasses, and added low lighting along the walk.

Scope

Design
Flagstone forecourt
Lighting
Planting

Plant palette

Mountain mahogany
Blue grama
Hummingbird mint
Lavender
Bur oak

Example write-ups for illustration. Photos and plans are not a specific customer's property; water savings are estimates that depend on how the old lawn was watered.

People setting sandstone boulders and planting native shrubs with a wheelbarrow on a desert site

Hardscape · Glade Park hillside

Boulder-terraced slope

A steep, eroding slope at high elevation, exposed to wind and snow.

Area: About 8,100 sq ft
Typical time: About 3 to 4 weeks on site
Est. water saved: est. 25,000 gal / yr

Plan drawing of a boulder-terraced fire court with pines and native shrubs

06Hardscape

Boulder-terraced slope

Setting: Glade Park hillside
Area: About 8,100 sq ft
Typical time: About 3 to 4 weeks on site
Est. water saved: est. 25,000 gal / yr

The problem

A steep, eroding slope at high elevation, exposed to wind and snow.

What we did

Terraced the slope with locally quarried boulders, set a fire court in the lee of the house, and planted tough native shrubs and grasses on a temporary establishment drip zone.

Scope

Design
Boulder terracing
Fire court
Drip irrigation

Plant palette

Pinyon pine
Big sagebrush
Mountain mahogany
Blue grama
Antelope bitterbrush

Example write-ups for illustration. Photos and plans are not a specific customer's property; water savings are estimates that depend on how the old lawn was watered.

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