Terra Nova Ecological Landscaping blog

Every time we have a rain fall shortage on the central coast of California we begin to hear talk of water rationing. All of a sudden we begin to see the wisdom of water conservation in all it’s various forms. Choosing plants for the landscape that are drought tolerant is a great place to start. Installing a drip system is a wise choise to be sure.
Another ‘no brainer’ is to catch the rain from the skys.
There are a number of ways to do this. Storing water in the soil, using swales or bio swales is one way.
Today the storage of rain water in cisterns has finally come of age. Here’s a link to an article in the Mid County Post for more information. This can be done above ground in tanks. There is a wide range of sizes to choose from depending on available space and need. From small rain barrels to 5,000 gallon tanks.

On the left is a 200 gallon tank we installed for rain water catchment. We install rain catchment systems with large size (5,000+) tanks connected together. On the right is the rain water cistern at the Sullivan House.

An article on Rain gardens and Terra Nova in the Santa Cruz Sentinel.
Here’s more about Rain Gardens.

Below ground cisterns are available now as well. Here’s just such a system as seen with Bruce from Pondsaway in Santa Cruz.

The Sullivan House in Capitola, CA. irrigates their landscape year around with rain water from their cistern.
Why not catch water from the sky? A rain catchment system can pay itself off within a few years depending on the size of the system. Call Terra Nova today for more information.
And now, for residents within the Soquel Creek Water District rebates are available for cistern installation (up to $750) as well as turf replacement (up tp $500) and smart water conserving timers ($75 to $125)
As water rates keep going up, free water from the sky just makes sense.