Drought moves gardening toward low‑water design
California growers finding ways to recharge groundwater are a bright spot, but long‑term shortages mean homeowners are shifting from lawns to drought‑tolerant landscaping — native plants, succulents, permeable paving and mulch are the trend. Cities are also testing advanced water recycling, and public willingness to pay for reuse is rising. (latimes.com) (dw.com) (homesandgardens.com)
The state’s new Bulletin 118 update (Groundwater: Bulletin 118 – Update 2025) reports California’s aquifers gained an estimated 2.2 million acre‑feet during Water Year 2024 and notes groundwater supplies provide about 40% of statewide demand in average years and nearly 60% in dry years. Local recharge programs are driving measurable recoveries in specific basins: Santa Clara Valley’s managed recharge supplies “the majority” of the county’s groundwater and Valley Water reports its basins hold more water than the county’s 10 surface reservoirs combined. In the southern San Joaquin Valley, Arvin‑Edison Water Storage District runs three spreading facilities (North Canal, Sycamore and Tejon Spreading Works) that the district and USBR documents cite as key to halting local aquifer declines. East Bay and other urban agencies are scaling recycling while rethinking potable reuse: EBMUD’s strategic materials show current recycled‑water production capability near 9.2 million gallons per day with a recycled‑water goal of 20 MGD by 2040 and a formal reevaluation of potable reuse included in recent planning updates. A contingent‑valuation survey published in Water Resources Research found households in small U.S. communities reported a mean willingness to pay about $49 per month to adopt municipal water reuse and avoid restrictions, a figure cited by recent coverage of rising public acceptance. Bay‑Area incentives and rules are accelerating turf removal and low‑water landscaping: Alameda County Water District’s “Lawn Be Gone!” rebate pays $2.00 per sq. ft. up to $3,000 for single‑family homes, the city of Fremont promotes sheet‑mulch and native‑plant conversions, and statewide policy (AB 1572) phases in a nonfunctional turf watering ban beginning Jan. 1, 2027.
