I didn’t plan this, but I’m pretty sure all of my big garden projects are tied to some big event in my life. After we moved into this house in Churchill Estates, my fiancé’s family came for a visit. I was determined to get rid of that huge bush you saw in the last post. Deadlines are always a big motivation for me!
My daughter was graduating from high school and we were having a grad party at our house – a great time for another project! I had heard about earning rebates for drought tolerant plants for taking out at least 200 sq. feet of grass. The corner of our front yard would just bake every day throughout the summer and the grass was patchy and ugly.
I started digging up the bermuda grass and tried to loosen up dry, sun baked soil. I realized that it would be a great time to add a stone walkway up the hill as well. After all of this hard work, I finally got to purchase the plants.
San Antonio Water Systems (SAWS) puts together a list of Water Saver approved plants that you can choose from. You purchase them from one of the local participating vendors and can use your $100 rebate towards the cost of the plants. You can use up to four rebates per year (eight lifetime total).
In order to use the rebate, you must purchase 15 plants : small plants must be purchased in 1 gallon containers, and large plants in 5 gallon containers. This larger, more mature plant means it has a better chance of surviving and thriving!
Many, but not all of the approved plants are Texas natives, but they are all water savers – that is, they can tolerate most south Texas droughts. SAWS Water Savers conservation program has all of the information on their website.
I especially appreciated all of the details about each plant (and pics!) : full sun, part shade, full shade, deer resistant, water garden, evergreen, and Texas native. Click here!
After you plant, you must submit photos so they can approve your project. The best part is after you’re approved, you get more rebates for mulch and other helpful garden supplies. SAWS has many different rebate programs – I’ll talk more about that in a later post!