GARDEN WATERSAVIOURS

There are lots of ways to save water outside.

We don't over-water the lawn. Our grass only needs watering every five to seven days in the summer and every 10 to 14 days in the winter. If it rains hard we don't water at all for about two weeks. We water the lawns early in the morning when wind speeds and temperatures are the lowest. This reduces losses from evaporation.

We give the grass a higher cut as this encourages the grass roots to go deeper. We do this because it shades the root system and holds soil moisture better than a short lawn.

We don't allow the sprinklers to water the paved areas. We know that the concrete doesn't grow! Also, we don't leave our hoses or sprinklers unattended because we know that they can pour out hundreds of litres in just a few hours.

As we know that fertiliser increases the need of water, we don't smother our school gardens with this chemical. We put mulch on our gardens because it helps control weeds and it decreases the need for water.

We have planted native trees and shrubs in our garden because as we know they don't need water as frequently as non native plants do. We have grouped our plants in order with their watering needs.

Instead of using a hose to clean our driveways, we use brooms and other things that don't involve water.

Our fountain uses 100% recycled water.

We know to tell the teacher if the air-conditioning is leaking or someone is spraying water in the playground.