AgriLife Extension Sets Landscaping in Drought Seminar Series in August

SAN ANGELO – The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service will conduct Landscaping in Drought, a three-part seminar series for homeowners, Aug. 16, Aug. 23 and Aug. 30 in San Angelo.

The three Thursday programs will be from 6-7 p.m. in the Stephens Central Library Community Room, 33 W. Beauregard Ave. Individual registration is $10 per seminar.

Allison Watkins, AgriLife Extension horticulturist in Tom Green County, said the series offers a prime opportunity to learn the best techniques for keeping landscapes alive during drought, while still saving water.

“Effective Aug. 1, San Angelo moved into ‘drought level 1’ water conservation mode, because our city only has an estimated 24 months of water left,” Watkins said. “Drought level 1 means residents with sprinklers can only water every seven days and can apply no more than 1 inch during that interval. That, and the string of 100-degree days we’ve been having, makes it tough to maintain a landscape, but it can be done and our goal for this seminar series is to inform the public on ways they can have a healthy, vibrant yard even under our current stressful environmental conditions.”

The seminar topics include:

• Aug. 16, How to Water the Landscape – when and how long to water, irrigation technology, drip irrigation.
• Aug. 23, Drought Tolerant Landscaping – plant selection, soil management, landscape planning.
• Aug. 30, Rainwater Harvesting – how to make a rain barrel, how to utilize large rain tanks.

For more information and to RSVP, call the AgriLife Extension office in Tom Green County at 325-659-6522.