Before and after: A Tustin garden goes from thirsty lawn to drought-tolerant oasis
We’re asking Southern California readers to share photos of their lawn-to-drought-garden makeovers. Here’s how one Tustin couple did it:
After they let their lawn die last year, Lorna and Phil Sikorski took advantage of Orange County’s Turf Removal Program and transformed it into a low water oasis. (The Turf Removal Program is currently accepting wait-list applications in some water agencies).
“Our rebate paid for the hard work that we couldn’t do,” says Phil. “A wonderful contractor to regrade and till our soil, create mounding and gravel pathways, and dig three big holes for three trees. He was very patient with Lorna’s arm waving, since we didn’t have a design to follow. It was all in Lorna’s head.”
The Sikorskis also used the rebate to purchase a Chilean mesquite tree, a pretty palo verde and a fast-growing fruitless mulberry tree.
The couple took it from there, choosing to plant the rest of the landscape themselves.
“I wanted it zoned in different sections,” says Lorna. “I also wanted a garden with color. I liked the Mediterranean gardens that I saw in Italy.”
The couple planted three different kinds of lavender, sage and flax, creeping thyme groundcover, kangaroo paw, dymondia margaretae and vinca, a heat- and drought-tolerant perennial that attracts hummingbirds.
Using a wheelbarrow, they installed 11 cubic yards of mulch. They also created a small patio close to the house using stones and floor tile left over from their kitchen. “That’s where we sit and have coffee,” Lorna says.
The couple chose not to install a drip irrigation system, preferring to water by hand. “We water so infrequently,” says Lorna.
A year later, Lorna says that the three-inch-deep gravel has minimized weeds and that the plants have introduced new wildlife to their neighborhood, which the couple welcome.
“We even had a heron appear in the yard,” says Lorna. “I literally almost bumped into the heron walking to the mailbox. He started dancing around the yard.”
If you’d like to submit photos of your drought garden makeover, please do so at Home@latimes.com. Bonus points if you include a “before” image as well.
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