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Waterwise Gardening - a book review

Waterwise Gardening: Everything You Need To Know About Efficient Watering to Grow a Healthy Yard by Richard Restuccia Published by Rizzoli, 2025 I would guess that watering is the major issue that most gardeners grapple with, especially novice gardeners. I know from working at the nursery that the majority of questions and issues we get stem from either watering too much or not watering enough.  Many people in our area have sprinkler systems and I'm sure that can be a good thing if used properly but I feel that they primarily keep the lawns green but fall short for landscape plants. Especially when it comes to trees and larger plants, the timing and amounts are not satisfactory for many plants. I often hear people say that their sprinklers are set to come on every day - yikes! And there are those who did not water because it "rained" when it actually drizzled.  The best thing to do in this situation is to have a xeric garden but that would mean sacrificing favorite plant...

Variegated Leaves

Eleagnus "Gilt Edge"

Holly "O'Spring"



 "Gold Child"

Variegated Sedum

Acuba "Gold Dust"

Variegated Euonymous (ground cover)

 
Variegated Shell Ginger

Yucca "Color Guard"

Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy

Comments

  1. I'm planning to bring variegated shell ginger indoors, just a little piece that I can tuck in somewhere.

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  2. Great pics == especially of the ginger and the 'Color Guard' :)

    Having had good luck with the variegated aucuba, I've added a straight species (all green) one to the garden this year. In my experience, they're pretty rare in the trade (at least here in TN).

    If you like variegation, have you tried growing Osmanthus heterophyllus 'Goshiki'? I've just added a couple to the garden this autumn and I'm very impressed so far!

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    Replies
    1. I do have that but I don't think the variegation is that strong. I need to check it.

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  3. You have a nice assortment of variegated foliage. Seeing your Sedum makes my blood boil. I had a variegated sedum and it back to being green. Why does this happen in my garden? I know your garden gets as hot and dry as mine from time to time. WHINE~~~

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  4. I thought I'd answer your question here so you won't miss it. The fountain grass pictured in my last blog post is actually Karly Rose grass. It looks that lovely all summer long, especially with backlighting. It's not really a winter grass though, the seedheads tend to shatter. I do highly recommend it, but after only three years it desperately needs dividing.

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