Alternative Water Sources

There are a number of ways we can use less water in our gardens. Firstly when planning your garden think SMART. Know your soil and improve it, use a range of suitable plants for your local conditions, mulch after planting, and as a regular gardening practice, and use rainwater and greywater whenever possible.

Rainwater harvesting

 This is the best way to make use of natural rainfall for watering your garden. There are also federal government rebates available of up to $500 for households to install rainwater tanks or greywater systems.

Use of Greywater

The Department of Natural Resources and Water has a useful fact sheet about using greywater in the garden. For those who are serious about recycling their greywater a treatment plant can be installed. This is a new industry but a google search will come up with the names of a couple of suppliers. There are also federal government rebates available.

Your Guide to Good Garden Watering

A handy resource for the home gardener providing information about watering with hand held hoses as well as irrigation systems. Soils are examined in depth and how a planting scheme affects water requirements. There are ideas of how to change these to consume less water. It also provides a guide to calculate exactly how much water to use and how often.

Download available soon

Resources

Visit the Smart Approved Watermark website. The Smart Approved WaterMark scheme aims to reduce water consumption through the promotion of products and services that help consumers conserve water.

At the 2008 Queensland Garden Expo Smart Approved Watermark held the first of the national awards for outstanding water saving products or services. The product of the year went to the innovative Hughie Sink.

Visit the ACLH website for more resources.