Save Money
Native grass projects take resources to install, but can offer significant water and maintenance savings over time.
Less water, mowing, and fertilizer
Both low-water and low-maintenance, native grasses present a significant opportunity for landscape cost savings. Most native and water-wise grasses require not only less frequent irrigation, but less frequent mowing and fertilization. To maximize your savings, choose a species known to thrive with low time-and-money investment.
Typical Native Grass Maintanance Schedule
- Watered once per week or less in midsummer.
- Fertilized once per year.
- Mowed once per month or less.
Typical Turfgrass Maintenance Schedule
- Watered three times per week in mid-summer.
- Fertilized three to four times per year.
- Mowed weekly.
Changing to native grass is not the only way to save money.
With less frequent mowing and fertilizing of existing grass, you can spend less money on landscape maintenance without undertaking a grass conversion project. To transition to “low-input” turf grass, reduce maintenance in less visible areas first, evaluate the results, then expand to other areas over time. And by letting your existing grass grow with less mowing, your community will get a sense of what taller grass might look like before investing in a conversion project.
Focus on irrigation efficiency.
Fixing leaks, modernizing controllers, more frequent maintenance checks and repairs, better management, and equipment upgrades can often achieve 25% water savings (or greater) in an irrigation system— without vegetation changes.